Doctor! Doctor?
by TARDIS-set-adrift
Summary: Clara Oswald was born to save the Doctor. But can Aderyn save the world when the countdown starts and can she stop the Doctor making the same mistake again? Part 9 of the Broken Girl series. COMPLETE.
1. Born to Save the Doctor

**Clara Oswald was born to save the Doctor. But can Aderyn save the world when the countdown starts and can she stop the Doctor making the same mistake again?**

 **Part 9 of the Broken Girl series.**

 **To everyone who has stuck with the series for this long: I thank you, truly thank you. I have no idea how long this series is going to be but I have a** **feeling it is going to be quite long. Hopefully I will be able to make it interesting enough for people to want to keep reading.**

 **I DO NOT own Doctor Who or it's characters...only Aderyn.**

* * *

"I don't know where I am. It's like I'm breaking into a million pieces. And there's only one thing I remember. I have to save the Doctor. He always looks different, but I always know it's him. Sometimes I think I'm everywhere at once. Running every second just to find him, just to save him. But he never hears me. Almost never. I blew into this world on a leaf. I'm still blowing. I don't think I'll ever land. I am Clara Oswald, I'm the Impossible Girl. And I was born to save the Doctor."


	2. Open When Alone

As soon as Vastra and Jenny walked through the door, Aderyn knew that something hadn't gone according to plan. They had been to see a truly horrible man in prison. And something was definitely wrong.

"We can't let that horrible man live." Jenny said, slamming the door behind her.

Vastra pushed back her veil. Aderyn had seen her angry before, but never this angry "He lives until I understand what he told me," She spotted Aderyn stood nervously by the door to the drawing room "We're going to need a conference call. I'll send out the invitations. Prepare yourself and fetch the candles."

Jenny ran into Vastra's study and came out again carrying two candles. She threw one to Aderyn, who ran upstairs to her room. Vastra hung up her cloak and followed Jenny into the dining room. Jenny set the candle on the table and waited for Vastra to signal that she was ready.

Aderyn put the candle on the bedside table and led on her bed. She knew who the invitations would go out to. She knew who would be there. She didn't want to attend the conference call. She took her lighter out of her pocket and toyed with it. Could she back out of this one? Could she really just get Jenny and Vastra to fill her in on everything that would be said? She could. But at the same time she couldn't. She was part of the Paternoster Peculiars, this was what she was meant to do.

Jenny leant across the table. It was certainly a fine table, there were many sides to it and it was wide. With the aid of a lit taper, Jenny was able to reach the candle. When the wick caught, she shook the taper and the flame went out. Soon, they were both asleep.

Jenny opened her eyes again and smiled. She was still sat at the table, but behind her was an array of arches. Through each arch she could see a kaleidoscope of colours.

"Oh, I like the new desktop."

A tea tray appeared in front of Vastra, who began to pour "I got bored of the Taj Mahal," She said. There was a heavy thud at one of the seats. Vastra didn't look up "Strax. Good of you to join us."

"It better be important," Strax grumbled "I was in the middle of destroying some very pleasant primitives." Strax hated being called in on his weekends off. On one of his weekends he had discovered an amazing place where he could battle the locals and have fun doing it. The locals of Glasgow weren't as easily brought down and actually put up a fight.

Vastra rolled her eyes "I apologise for the interruption, but there is urgent news concerning the Doctor."

Strax shifted in his seat. If the Doctor was involved this was very important indeed "Who else is coming?"

Vastra smiled "The women."

Clara whistled to herself as she took various baking ingredients from a cupboard. Artie looked over at her from where he and Angie were sat at the kitchen table, doing their homework. "Oh no, you're going to try and make a souffle again aren't you?"

"My mum's souffle yeah. And this time I'll get it right. I will be souffle girl." She whisked the ingredients into a batter with vigour.

"But how can it be your mum's souffle if you're making it." Artie argued.

Clara set the mixing bowl on the counter and poked at the batter with a whisk "Because, Artie, like my mum always said - the soufflé isn't the soufflé, the soufflé is the recipe."

Artie's reply was lost as she picked up a letter that had been left on the kitchen counter. It was very old looking envelope with neat, curly hand writing on the front. It was addressed to her. She turned it over to open it and noticed, in large, demanding letters, across the envelope flap was written 'Open when alone.'

She told the children to get on with their homework and made her way upstairs. As soon as she was in the seclusion of her room, she tore open the envelope. The letter inside was as old as the envelope. She unfolded it and read it quickly.

 _'My dearest Clara. The Doctor entrusted me with your contact details, in the event of an emergency, and I fear one has now arisen. Assuming this letter will have reached you, as planned, on April 10th 2013, please find and light the enclosed candle.'_ It said. Clara peered into the envelope and found a small, thin candle. She blinked, confused, at it before turning her attention back to the letter ' _It will release a soporific which will induce a trance state, enabling direct communication across the years. However, as I realise you have no reason to trust this letter, I have taken the liberty of embedding the same soporific into the fabric of the paper you are now holding. Speak soon!'_

Before Clara could figure out when the letter meant, sleep took hold suddenly.


	3. Do You Hear the Whispermen?

Unlike Strax's heavy landing, Clara dropped into a seat with ease and dignity. She looked from Jenny to Vastra.

"Where am I?" She asked.

"Exactly where you were. But asleep." Jenny said, passing her a cup of tea.

"Time travel has always been possible in dreams," Vastra explained "Now we are just awaiting two other participants." Clara noticed the exasperated sigh that Madame Vastra tried to hid.

"Oh no," Strax whined "That includes the one with the big head."

"It's hair." Jenny laughed.

River Song's sudden appearance put everyone else to shame. There was no dropping into a chair, be it heavily or not. One second she wasn't there, then, with an elegant puff of smoke, she was sat next to Clara.

"Madame Vastra." River said cheerfully.

"Professor, please help yourself to tea." Vastra said politely. There was a definite unease to Vastra's entire appearance demeanour now.

River ignored the offer of tea, instead opting to lift a champagne flute that was suddenly on the table in front of her.

"How did you do that?" Jenny asked, awestruck.

"Disgracefully." River replied with a smile, raising her glass in a toast.

Clara watched River from the corner of her eye. She had heard the Doctor mention a professor. But she had always assumed that he had been referring to someone else. The wild haired woman that sat next to her now, had not been who she had thought of.

Vastra noticed Clara watching River and cleared her throat politely. "Of course," she said "You two wouldn't have met yet. Clara, this is Professor River Song. Professor Song, this is the Doctor's travelling companion, Clara Oswald."

River raised an eyebrow.

"The Doctor has mentioned you." Clara said conversationally.

River's eyebrow raised higher, threatening to vanish into the mane of curly hair "Mentioned how much of a bad influence I am on poor Aderyn I don't doubt."

"Well you are a terrible influence."

River looked across the table at where Aderyn had suddenly appeared next to Jenny.

"You took your time." River said.

"I was busy." Aderyn snapped. A sudden shift in the way Aderyn was sitting told River that Jenny had just kicked her. Vastra shot both River and Aderyn a warning look.

She had been reluctant to use a conference call. The entire carriage journey home, she had been silently arguing with herself as to whether it was worth doing. But she truly felt she had no choice. Although she had a limited knowledge of human behaviour, Vastra truly understood why Aderyn was snapping and grumpy. She had been warned by the Doctor that having Clara and Aderyn in the same place, could be difficult. And she knew that having River Song present as well wouldn't help matters much. After all, Aderyn had finally been getting on with her life.

"Perhaps we should get down to the business at hand." Vastra said pointedly. Aderyn looked down at her tea and nodded.

"That might be good, dear." Jenny said. She then shivered. She could have sworn someone had just walked passed her.

Vastra waved her hand in the air above the table and a holographic projection appeared. It was a projection of a man.

"Clarence DeMarco. Murderer, under sentence of death. He offered us this." She waved her hand again and the projection changed.

"Space time coordinates." River breathed.

Aderyn dug in her pockets, frantically searching for a notepad and pen. She pulled numerous small items from this pocket. Many pens, a crumpled cigarette packet and lighter, a packet of chewing gum, a black leather card wallet. She finally found a small notebook and snatched up a pen before stuffing everything else back in her pocket.

"How do you fit all of that in one pocket?" Clara asked curiously.

"Bigger on the inside," Aderyn flipped opened the notebook and scribbled hastily before putting it back in her pocket "Trust me, it comes in useful."

"But I thought you always say not to trust a girl with pockets." Clara said, crossing her arms and leaning back in her chair.

Aderyn shrugged "you shouldn't. You never know what she's hiding."

"Then how do we know we can rust you."

Aderyn ignored the glare she got from Vastra and the kick to the shin that Jenny delivered. She leant forward in her seat and whispered "You don't."

"That is enough," Vastra snapped, looking from Aderyn to Clara "I can see now why the Doctor dislikes having both of you in the same room. And had it been my choice, I wouldn't have put you two together. But this is important. The Doctor's life could be in danger and all you two can do is squabble. Get some perspective." Clara leant back in her seat and muttered apologies at her lap.

Aderyn leant back in her seat and looked up at the projection. In the sudden silence, she was certain she heard a faint whispering.

"This, Mr DeMarco claims, is the location of the Doctor's greatest secret." Vastra said, bringing the meeting back to the point at hand.

Clara frowned "Which is?"

Jenny had far more self control then Aderyn, and she could certainly predict Aderyn's response. So she hurriedly spoke, blocking any attempt from Aderyn to wind Clara up even more "We don't know. It's a secret."

"The Doctor does not discuss his secrets with anyone, my dear. If you're still entertaining the idea that you are an exception to this rule, ask yourself one question. What is his name?" Aderyn said quickly. Clara shook her head. Aderyn grinned horribly at her "I know it. And so does Professor Song." She leant back in her seat and crossed her arms, looking smug.

"In my defence, I only know because you told me." River said. The clink of Rivers glass on the wooden table was the only noise that broke the awkward silence.

For the first time since her arrival, Aderyn met River's gaze "I told you it would come in useful and it did."

There was a few moments of pointed silence that was only broken by a faint shiver from Jenny. River was impressed with how long Aderyn was able to hold her gaze, she had obviously been practicing. Had it not been for the urgency of the conference call, she would have stayed there until Aderyn broke the gaze, but she didn't have time for that.

She sighed and turned to Madame Vastra "So what else did this DeMarco tell you? He didn't buy his life with some co-ordinates. How did he prove their value?"

"With one word only," Vastra suddenly had everyone's attention. Clara and River were curious, whereas Jenny, Aderyn and Strax all knew of the one word test and how important one word could be when it came to getting Vastra's attention. "A word I have only heard connected with the Doctor. Trenzalore."

Aderyn dropped the tea cup she had been holding. "How exactly did he describe what he was giving you?"

For a third time, Vastra waved her hand above the table. Once again the projection changed. This time DeMarco was looking down at them all "The Doctor's has a secret he will take to the grave. It has been discovered."

"You don't understand." River said quietly.

"Everyone shut up," Aderyn snapped suddenly "Can anyone else hear that?"

"Hear what?" Vastra asked.

Aderyn closed her eyes. She put to use a trick Vastra had taught her a long time ago. She slowly shut off her other senses and listened. She was able to hear everyone's heartbeat. She could hear the steady, slow beat of Vastra's and the quick, worried rhythm of River's, the regular thud of Strax and the uneven beating of Clara. She could hear her own heartbeats pounding out a loud, synchronized beat. She also her a slower, ever slowing beat that was getting quieter. There was only one person that could belong to. She then heard a whispering, louder then last time she had heard it "Do you hear the Whispermen? The Whispermen are near." She wasn't certain what that meant. But her ears suddenly picked up another, more worrying sound. Jenny's laboured breathing. She was too late. A single tear gathered on her eyelash as Aderyn opened her eyes and turned to Jenny. "I'm sorry." She said.

Jenny shook her head "It was my fault. I should have made sure the doors were locked and I should have listened. But you have to go. There could still be time. Just go."

"I heard and I didn't listen," Aderyn snapped. She began digging in her pockets again, far more frantically this time. The pocket that she went through seemed to contain much larger items then the other one. The table top was soon littered with various items, an apple, her phone, a handheld scanner, a sonic screwdriver, two white gold rings on chain and finally what she had been looking for, a vortex manipulator.

"You have a remarkable amount of my stuff in that pocket." River murmured.

"You left it behind." Aderyn said sadly. She pulled the manipulator over her wrist, fumbling with the straps. Everyone watched with grim curiosity.

"That won't work here." Strax said,

"I know. But if I put it on now I'll be wearing it when I wake up." Aderyn said quietly "Speaking of which, River you need to wake me up."

River stood quickly "What's wrong?"

"We've got company. Not good company. You'll all have to wake up. Especially you Vastra. I should have listened." She ran her fingers through her hair.

"What is going on, Oz?" River demanded.

"I'm sorry, so very,very sorry. But Jenny has been murdered and the Doctor is in danger. So River, you really need to wake me up before I die as well." Aderyn said.

River moved quickly. She slapped Aderyn, who then vanished. She then did the same to Vastra and threw her glass of champagne over Strax. She decided the best way to wake Clara up without causing offence was by bending down, grabbing the leg of Clara's chair and tipping it back. Clara was gone before the chair hit the floor.


	4. From the Wife, JF

Aderyn awoke with a start. She sat up, looking around the room. There was no one there. She wanted to run downstairs and see if Jenny and Vastra were ok. She was just wondering whether she had over reacted when she saw them. They appeared suddenly and there were many of them. Their faces were white, except blackened skin around their mouths, which housed pointed teeth. They had no eyes, but slight indentations where eyes should have been. As they walked slowly towards her they spoke.

"The trap is set. The Doctor's friend will travel where the Doctor ends. His friends are lost for ever more, unless he goes to Trenzalore."

"He can't do that! He can't go there!" Aderyn shouted. Remembering Jenny's orders to leave, she slammed her hand onto the manipulator and vanished.  
_

When Clara woke she wasn't entirely certain where she was. It took a moment to realise she was led on her bedroom floor. As she walked down the stairs she could hear the Doctor. He emerged, stumbling, into the hall, arms outstretched. He had been blindfolded.

"Doctor what are you doing?"

"Clara," he said cheerfully "The kids wanted to go to the cinema but I said no, not while you were asleep. They suggested playing a game."

Clara removed the blindfold "They've gone to the cinema."

The Doctor looked defeated "I thought I had it all under control, the little Daleks."

"Doctor, that doesn't matter. I had a conference call. There's a problem."  
_

Aderyn appeared in the TARDIS. She was secretly happy to find it empty. She checked the scanner. They were at Clara's. But that meant Clara could tell the Doctor what happened and she had time to sort herself out. Aderyn ran to her room. She had everything she needed on the TARDIS to fight her way through almost anything. The TARDIS whined as she prepared to leave.

"Don't be like that," she said "I need to get her back." She grabbed her sword off the stand and threw it onto the bed. She stuffed her pockets with everything she felt she needed. Turning to the bed, she saw the doll. The doll was a rag doll with curly hair, a grey dress and small piece of brown leather wrapped around its wrist. The Doctor had given her the doll when she was small. He had told her it was called River and that River would always look after her. Well River couldn't this time. She picked up the doll, running her fingers through the hair. She felt a wave of sadness and put the doll back on the bed. She had completely forgotten she had even left it here. She had given up wondering what had happened to it. As she picked up the sword, a small piece of paper fell from where she had tucked it into the sheath. She knew exactly what was written on it. It was a piece of paper that had got her through tough times. Without really looking at it, she stuffed it into her shirt pocket and headed for the door.

When she reached the console room again, the Doctor was there. He was sat on a step. Aderyn could see that he was upset and it looked like he'd been crying. When Clara walked in, Aderyn strode angrily towards her "What did you say to him?" She hissed.

"Trenzalore." Clara whispered.

The Doctor had paid no attention to either of them. For a brief second Aderyn believed she could leave without him noticing. She was almost at the door when he spoke.

"You're not going Aderyn. It's too dangerous."

"I have to. I have to get her back. I heard the whispers and ignored them. She heard them too and they killed her. I should have been listening. I saw them when I woke up. It might not be too late." Aderyn said quietly.

"What whispering? Who did you see?" The Doctor asked.

Aderyn stormed passed where the Doctor was sat and disappeared down a corridor. She reappeared quickly, flipping through a book "Do you hear the Whispermen? The Whispermen are near. If you hear the Whispermen then turn away your ear. Do not hear the Whisper men, whatever else you do. For once you've heard the Whisper Men, they'll stop and look at you." She said as she turned the pages. She soon stopped flipping through the pages and handed to book to the Doctor. He looked at the page she had left the book open at. It was a peculiar book, and the Doctor had no idea where she had got it from. It held information on various aliens and creatures from throughout the universe. He looked down at the picture of tall, human looking creatures with white, featureless faces and long black coats and top hats. While the Doctor was musing over the book she had given him, Aderyn walked towards the door.

"I'm serious Aderyn. You're not going. It's too dangerous. You won't make it out. I'll go but you will stay here. " The Doctor snapped, slamming the book closed.

Aderyn slammed the door "Doctor, I owe it to her to go and get her back. Strax and Madame Vastra too."

"How did you get away?" Clara asked "You said you had company and you'd die if River didn't wake you up."

"I might not have died. I may have ended up somewhere else. I got away because I have River's vortex manipulator," Aderyn said. She walked up to the Doctor and sat next to him. Her voice broke as she spoke. "Doctor, I would rather die trying to help them then sit around here doing nothing. You really shouldn't go. But either way I am going. I have to get her back. I can't loose her again."

The Doctor didn't turn to look at her "And I can't loose you. What else did they say?"

Aderyn stood quickly, adjusting her sword belt "It's not important."

The Doctor stood, drawing himself to his full height. With every step he took towards her, Aderyn took a step backwards until her back was against the console "I know it's important because you've just told me it's not. I know you too well Aderyn Tyler, I can tell when you're lying. So tell me what else was said."

"The trap is set. The Doctor's friends will travel where the Doctor ends. His friends are lost for ever more, unless he goes to Trenzalore," Aderyn said quietly. "But you can't go there."

"Of course I can. I can go anywhere I want." The Doctor said with mock enthusiasm.

"What's at Trenzalore? Why is it so bad?" Clara demanded.

"When you are a time traveller, there is one place you must never go. One place in all of space and time you must never, ever find yourself." The Doctor said.

"Where's that?"

"The Doctor has a secret he will take to the grave. It has been discovered," Aderyn said. Clara still looked confused. "It's not his secret that's been discovered."

"Then what has?"

"You don't listen do you?" Aderyn snapped.

"Don't start arguing. It's not my secret that's been discovered. It's my grave," The Doctor said.

"How can you have a grave when you're not dead yet?" Clara asked, marching up to the console.

"We all do, somewhere out there in the future, waiting for us." Aderyn said.

"The trouble with time travel, you can actually end up visiting." the Doctor said quietly.

"But you're not going to. You just said it's the one place you must never go. Why go if..." Clara started.

"I have to save Vastra and Strax. Jenny too, if it's still possible. They cared for me during the dark times. Never questioned me, never judged me, they looked after Aderyn. Well, they tried. They took her in and helped her, they left me to do what I wanted. They were just kind. I owe them. I have a duty." The Doctor interjected.

"Ok, I get that," Clara said quietly. She then turned to face Aderyn "You know it wasn't your fault. Do you really think Jenny would want you to put yourself in danger?" Clara said soothingly to Aderyn.

Aderyn turned quickly to face Clara, anger burning in her eyes "I don't want the Doctor to go. But either way I am going. This is why I'm going," Aderyn took the small piece of paper out of her pocket and thrust it at Clara. "It was my fault because I didn't listen. And don't you dare tell me what Jenny would want. I've lost count of the amount of times she put herself in danger for me. I would rather die if it means she'll be safe. Vastra too." Aderyn spat angrily.

With shaking hands, Clara took the paper and unfolded it "You can always take the easy way out and give up, but real strength comes when you decide to keep pushing forward no matter what the circumstances. You were given this life because you are strong enough to live it. Remember, you are stronger than you think. From The Wife, J.F," Clara read "Um, The Wife?"

"Yes The Wife. The Wife as in 'I'm a lizard woman from the dawn of time and this is my wife.' It became her nickname for a while." Aderyn mumbled "She was there for me when I needed her and now I get to return the favour."

"Aderyn, I trust you made note of the coordinates." The Doctor said.

"Of course." Aderyn smiled, brandishing her battered notebook.

The Doctor looked over at Clara "There's no point telling you this is too dangerous is there?"

"None at all."


	5. Aderyn Pond

The Doctor imputed the coordinates into the console. The TARDIS whirred into life then began to shudder. It wasn't the smoothest ride the TARDIS had ever taken them on. They were soon being thrown around the console room. Aderyn clung to the console, following the Doctor as he struggled around it "She's just figured out where we're going. She's against it. I'm about to cross my own timeline in the biggest way possible. The TARDIS doesn't like it. She's fighting it." the Doctor shouted.

"Of course she doesn't like it. She's clever remember." Aderyn shouted back. The TARDIS gave an almighty lurch and the Doctor and Aderyn could no longer cling to the console. They were thrown over the railings. Clara had been the only one who had been able to stay upright. Her iron grip on the railings was unbreakable.

"What just happened?" She asked, looking over the railings at the Doctor and Aderyn, who lay sprawled on the floor.

"She won't let us land." The Doctor said.

"She could have refused less painfully." Aderyn shouted. She rolled onto her back and took deep, heavy breaths.

"Now what?" Clara asked.

The Doctor eased himself to his feet and launched himself at the TARDIS door. He threw it open and frowned down at the craggy surface of the planet. "So this is where I end up. Always thought maybe I'd retire. Take up watercolours, or bee-keeping, or something. Apparently not."

"So, how do we get down there? Jump?" Clara asked.

"Don't be silly." Aderyn said. Her knees cracked loudly in protest as she stood.

"No, no. We fall. The TARDIS has turned off everything except the anti gravity. So that's what I'm going to turn off." The Doctor said, running to the console. Aderyn joined him at the console, gripping on to it as tightly as possible.

"Allons-y." She muttered.

The Doctor pointed his sonic screwdriver at the console and the TARDIS began to plummet towards the planet.

Aderyn's grip would have remained but Clara crashed into her, sending her staggering backwards and once again, over the railings. When the TARDIS crashed, she was, once again, lying on her back.

"Doctor?" She stammered.

"Yes Addy?" He peered over the railings at her.

"Have we landed?"

The Doctor looked over at the TARDIS console "Yes, I think we have."

"I can do with more then just you think." Aderyn said.

"We've landed. You can move." The Doctor said, walking over to the door.

"I think I'll stay here for a minute. If we've landed then the room shouldn't be spinning." Aderyn said calmly. The Doctor walked over to her and lifted her to her feet before she could protest. She was close behind him when he ran for the door. But he didn't let her leave straight away.

He cast a cautionary look over the landscape before stepping out, his hand still raised behind him to indicate that no one else was to leave the safety of the TARDIS just yet. He took a few careful steps away from the TARDIS, still on guard, still looking around, before he dropped his hand and Aderyn and Clara stumbled out of the TARDIS.

The terrain wasn't much better from on the planet's surface then it had been from above it. The land was uneven and rocky and all around them was a sea of graves. Standing in the distance, towering above everything else was a TARDIS. The Doctor was gazing up at it when Clara and Aderyn approached him.

"It's the TARDIS." He breathed.

"I can see that." Clara said.

The Doctor shook his head " No. When a TARDIS is dying, sometimes the dimension dams start breaking down. All the bigger on the inside stuff leaks out. It grows. When I say it's the TARDIS I don't mean it looks like the TARDIS. I mean it actually is the TARDIS. My TARDIS. Where else would they bury me?"

The sight of the TARDIS in such disrepair, clearing dying, made Aderyn's stomach knot. "Poor old girl." She said.

Clara looked at her with disbelief " We are looking at the Doctor's, your father's, grave. And you're more concerned about the TARDIS?"

"Everybody dies, Clara." The Doctor said curtly as he began to stride towards it.

"If you're going to run with the Doctor you should get used to that idea. But looking at the TARDIS like this," Aderyn paused. She knew Clara wouldn't fully understand what she was feeling right now. But she tried " It's like going back and looking at the ruins of your home after it's been burnt to the ground or destroyed in an earthquake or something. But come on, this isn't getting anything done." Aderyn looked at her feet as she followed the Doctor, not wanting to look up at the TARDIS any longer.

Clara watched them go. She knew she would never feel the same connection to the TARDIS that Aderyn or the Doctor felt. Truth be told, she still got the impression the TARDIS didn't like her. She thought maybe that was the reason she felt a rising dread at the knowledge that she was looking at the Doctor's grave. With a sigh, she made to follow the Doctor and Aderyn.

"Clara!" She looked round, surprised to hear someone behind her call her name. When she turned she saw River Song.

"Don't speak. Don't say my name. They can't hear or see me," River said quickly as Clara opened her mouth to talk "Only you can. I've left the link open from the conference call. I'm here to help you."

When Aderyn realised that Clara hadn't followed her, she turned with a sigh. Clara hadn't moved from her spot on the hill, except she was now facing away from them. She alerted the Doctor to the fact Clara hadn't followed and slowly began to walk back to her. When the Doctor reached Clara, he sighed.

"Well come on then. We need to..." The Doctor had started speaking with such an authoritative tone that when his voice broke off abruptly, Aderyn ran the last few steps towards them.

"That's not right." the Doctor said. To Clara, he was staring straight at River Song. But Clara couldn't see what the Doctor was seeing. His line of sight was unhampered by the vision of River, he saw what was behind her. He passed through her as he walked over and knelt at a grave. Clara heard Aderyn's approach as she snapped that there were important things they were meant to do. But, she too, stopped talking mid sentence as she saw what the Doctor saw. When Clara turned to her, she saw that Aderyn was frowning. When Clara looked back at the Doctor, River had moved. She was now stood next to Clara, where she had a better view of Aderyn as she joined the Doctor. Clara moved forwards, curious as to what had suddenly caught their attention.

When she was able to see over their heads, Clara gasped. The name on the gravestone was 'Aderyn Pond.'


	6. It's All Wibbly Wobbly

"Aderyn Pond? I thought your surname was Tyler." Clara said.

"It was until I got married. But that's not what I changed my name to." Aderyn breathed. She hadn't been lying when she said there was a grave out there for everyone. There was one out there for her as well. It made sense to her that she would be buried wherever the Doctor was buried. That wasn't what surprised her. It was that the name was so wrong. She didn't have time to muse on this for too long, however, as it soon became very clear that they weren't alone.

"This man must fall as all men must. The fate of all is always dust." Aderyn and the Doctor stood and spun on the spot. Both had sonic screwdrivers in hand before they were fully upright. The Doctor grabbed Clara and pulled her behind them as the Whispermen got nearer, their hands outstretched towards the Doctor. But the sonic screwdrivers did nothing to inhibit the movements of the Whispermen. Aderyn was reluctant to draw her sword until they were close enough to reach with it. She had been taught by Madame Vastra that it wasn't a good idea to play you're most powerful asset until it was strictly necessary. And that once a sword had been drawn, blood must be spilt. She didn't believe that the sword would have much affect against these creatures.

"If the name is wrong is it definitely her grave?" River whispered hurriedly in Clara's ear.

"If the name on the gravestone is wrong, is it really Aderyn's grave?" Clara echoed.

The Doctor and Aderyn were now backing away from the Whispermen, they were stood on the grave.

"Bit too busy to worry about that." the Doctor snapped.

"Maybe it's a false grave." River whispered.

"Maybe it's a false grave." Clara said.

"Secret entrance." Aderyn said. The Doctor turned quickly, aiming the screwdriver at the grave. The ground fell away beneath them and they landed in a tangled heap in a tunnel beneath it.

The Whispermen looked down at them from the open grave "The man who lies will lie no more. When this man lies at Trenzalore."

"Oh shut up." Aderyn said. The blue of her sonic screwdriver illuminated the tunnel as the grave closed above them.

Aderyn pushed the Doctor off of her leg and stood. Doing most of her work in the evening had improved Aderyn's night vision greatly. She wasn't as good in the dark as Madame Vastra, but she was still above the human average. Even with this on her list of assets, she couldn't see very far ahead of her in the darkness that surrounded them.

The Doctor and Clara were soon on their feet. The Doctor grabbed Aderyn's wrist and pulled her along. As much as Aderyn trusted the Doctor, she was starting to question what she had been dragged into and where he was taking them. But she soon saw a light a head of them. As they got nearer to it, the earth floor was replaced by stone and she saw that the light was a torch on a wall. The Doctor grabbed it and sonicked the flame. It became brighter and stronger. They began their walk in silence, their footsteps the only sound, until Aderyn felt the need for conversation, no matter how awkward, to quell her sudden fears.

"Doctor," She said quietly "why is it that when it comes to you and River, I am always, at some point, getting lead into darkness? The library, the Catacombs of the Aplan temple, the Pandorica chamber, a children's home."

"Technically, the children's home was Oswin, not you. So you can't really blame River for that one." The Doctor replied.

"Don't be picky."

"And you can't really blame River for this one." The Doctor said.

"Give me time and I can find a way, Spaceman." Aderyn snorted.

"Aderyn Tyler-Song, that's really rude." The Doctor hissed.

"Don't use my full name." Aderyn snapped.

"Then don't call me Spaceman." The Doctor retorted.

"Um, Tyler-Song?" Clara asked.

"Yep." Was all Aderyn could bring herself to say in response. She knew Clara would have a lot of questions. Most of them she wouldn't want to answer. She braced herself for the onslaught.

"Are you married to River?" Clara asked. Next to her, River looked down at her feet.

"I was." Aderyn said.

"Really? You wouldn't think you were married with the way you spoke to her." Clara muttered.

"I said WAS married. I WAS married to her. You really need to listen." Aderyn snapped.

Something didn't seem right about the idea of Aderyn being married to River. Then a memory surfaced "Hang on," Clara said suddenly "I thought your wife died."

"She did. She died the day I met her. Yet I still kept bumping into her." Aderyn said quietly.

Clara, glad she was walking at the back of the trio, turned to River.

"Yeah, probably should have mentioned that." River said.

Clara frowned, trying to come to terms with the news "How could I have met her if she's dead?"

Aderyn didn't reply. She didn't want to be having this conversation.

"The one you met died a long time ago." The Doctor offered as a way of saving Aderyn from her discomfort. He knew she had been doing well since she had become a permanent member of the Paternoster Peculiars. He'd go as far as to say she had moved on. But having to sit in a conference call with River, and now having the conversation with Clara was only going to set her back.

"The one I met? There's more then one River Song?" Clara gaped.

Aderyn stopped walking suddenly and turned to face Clara "Look, to explain it properly would need a hell of a lot of time and several flow charts. To put it as simply as I can, time isn't a straight line it's all..." Aderyn waved her hands as though trying to pluck an explanation out of the air.

River shook her head "She's going to say wibbly wobbly." She sighed.

Aderyn dropped her hands to her sides "It's all wibbly wobbly." She then turned and carried on walking, putting a definite end to the conversation.

"You went back to the library, didn't you?" The Doctor said quietly.

"No." Aderyn said, a bit too quickly.

"I know you did."

"Then why ask?" Aderyn said.

"You didn't read her diary, did you?"

"No. I left it behind. That's not what I went back for." Aderyn subconsciously reached up to the chain around her neck.

"I know." The Doctor said. With his free had he reached out for Aderyn, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze. He had seen the chain earlier. She had stopped wearing it for a while but she was wearing it again now. He had also noticed that there was another ring on the chain. It was no longer just Aderyn's wedding ring, there was River's as well.


	7. She's Never Said Goodbye

Vastra had awoken to find herself on a dirt floor between two walls, walls so high she could only just see the top. And that was only because of the evening light streaming in through high windows. From her position she could see words at the top of one wall, but she was reading the writing backwards. It took her little time to realise that the words said 'Police Public Call Box'. She knew then where she was. She was between the inner and outer shells of the TARDIS. Strax had been able to quickly, and easily, revive Jenny. But Vastra was reluctant to let her move too much just yet. She, eventually, pulled Jenny to her feet. She had regained some colour in her pale cheeks and Vastra had no desire to stay in the same spot too long. They were just about to investigate their surroundings when a voice made them jump.

"I see you have repaired your pet. No matter, I was only attracting your attention. I presume I have it."

Vastra, Jenny and Strax turned to see Dr Simeon walking cooly towards them. They stared at him.

"This is not possible." Vastra said.

"And yet here we are." Simeon spread his arms, gesturing the TARDIS around them.

"But he died." Jenny said.

"Simeon died, but the creature that possessed him lived on," Vastra explained. She stepped forward, between Jenny and Dr Simeon "I take it I am now talking to the Great Intelligence?"

Dr Simeon smiled "Welcome to the final resting place of the cruel tyrant. Of the slaughterer of the ten billion and the vessel of the final darkness. Welcome to the tomb of the Doctor." Dr Simeon walked passed them, quickly finding an exit. He looked out over the graveyard that surrounded them.

As much as Vastra wanted to run, to drag Jenny and Strax away from certain danger, she was more than a little curious. She approached Simeon.

"It was a minor skirmish, by the Doctor's blood-soaked standards. Not exactly the Time War, but enough to finish him. In the end, it was too much for the old man." Simeon said quietly.

"Blood soaked?" Jenny spat.

Vastra hushed her gently "The Doctor has been many things, but never blood-soaked."

Simeon rolled his eyes and turned to face the trio. "Tell that to the leader of the Sycorax. Or Solomon the trader, or the Cybermen, or the Daleks. The Doctor lives his life in darker hues, day upon day, and he will have other names before the end. The Storm. The Beast. The Valeyard."

Vastra let out a breath of laughter "Even if any of this were true – which I take the liberty of doubting - how did you come by this information?"

"I AM Information."

Jenny shook her head in disbelief "You were a mind without a body, last time we met."

"And you were supposed to stay that way." Vastra added.

Simeon reached up and removed his top hat "Alas, I did." He dropped the hat and pulled at his face. Beneath his skin was nothing. His clothes fell to the floor. Where there had once been Simeon, there was nothing. One of the Whispermen who had followed him into the dying TARDIS, stepped forward. They watched in horror as it's face changed. Soon, the Whisperman had changed and Simeon was stood in front of them once again.  
_

Aderyn was getting annoyed. Since she had put an end to the conversation about River, she regretted it. The Doctor spoke a lot, mostly about nothing in particular. But she appreciated what he was doing, trying to take her mind off of River and away from the idea that Jenny may not have survived. She stared gloomily ahead as he spoke, occasionally making noises to either agree, or disagree, with what he was saying. She had only been paying partial attention to what he had been saying, however, and it took her a few moments to realise that she had agreed to spend a few days in the TARDIS with the Doctor and Clara. The Doctor was already talking excitedly about the places they could go.

Clara watched Aderyn and the Doctor as they walked along. Even from the back, she could tell that Aderyn wasn't really listening. She looked at the Doctor surprisingly little as he spoke, except when she realised she had agreed to spend some time in the TARDIS. Her head had snapped round to look at the Doctor so quickly that Clara had jumped. Now she knew Aderyn wasn't listening. The Doctor was listing several things he thought it would be fun to do. Clara stopped listening. She kept looking at River from the corner of her eye. River was watching Aderyn. When there was a break in the Doctor's talking, Clara cleared her throat.

"Where are we?" She asked.

"Catacombs," Aderyn sighed "I hate catacombs."

"So, Aderyn," Clara asked brightly "How come I met your dead wife?"

"The Doctor made a back up." Aderyn replied shortly.

Clara frowned and turned back to look at River. Just for a second, the image of River flickered.

"I died saving her life," River explained "So the Doctor saved me to a database in the biggest library in the universe. He didn't do that for himself, or for me. He did it for her. I've seen them many times since then. Aderyn more then the Doctor. I've run with her, saved her life and she's saved mine. We've had adventures, we've laughed, lived, and I loved her. But ultimately I was left like a book on a shelf. And she's never said goodbye. Not once."

Without realising it, Clara had stopped walking. But that was because River had stopped walking. She was watching Aderyn walking away. River sighed sadly "She doesn't like endings."

"Clara, come on." The Doctor shouted. She turned to look at them. Aderyn and the Doctor were watching her. She turned back to River. She felt she ought to say something. But there was nothing she could say.

River flickered again, but this time it was because something had walked through her. Whispermen were advancing on them. Clara began to walk quickly backwards. She didn't really want to take her eyes off of the creatures that were bearing down on her. She heard hurried footsteps and Aderyn grabbed her arm.

"Move quicker then that." Aderyn snapped. She pulled Clara to the waiting Doctor who pushed them both ahead of him. Aderyn didn't let go of Clara's arm and Clara stumbled as she struggled to keep up with her, while being pushed along by the Doctor.


	8. But You Will Find Out Soon

At some point, neither Aderyn or Clara knew when, the Doctor overtook them. He burst through a door and pulled both women through it before he turned to slam the door behind them. But as he reached for the door, a hand reached through it and closed around Clara's wrist. As Clara was pulled backwards, Aderyn grabbed her arm and the Doctor threw his weight against the door. The Whisperman's arm stopped the door closing properly and the Doctor pushed all his weight against it. Still holding onto Clara, Aderyn threw herself against the door at the same time as the Doctor. Clara stumbled forwards as the force pulling her back vanished. Aderyn leapt forwards and caught Clara before she fell. She righted her quickly before turning on the Doctor.

"Ok, I vote we get out of here quickly." She said quietly.

The Doctor pointed ahead of them at a long, winding staircase "It's a bit of a climb I'm afraid. Think I remember the way."

As Aderyn looked up the stairs, she could feel her lungs protest at the prospect of climbing them. Sometimes her human half took over and reminded her that she was a smoker and exercise generally did her no good. Blissfully, as they began the climb up the stairs, she realised that it wasn't as long as she thought. They soon reached the top and, much to Aderyn's annoyance, another darkened corridor. They walked in silence and the Doctor soon realised that he could only hear one set of footsteps clearly beside his own. He looked over his shoulder and saw Clara a distance behind them. When he slowed, Aderyn turned round. Like the Doctor she could see that something clearly wasn't right. Clara was stumbling along slowly. They both ran back to Clara, concern etched on their faces.

"Clara, are you ok?" Aderyn asked as she reached Clara. Clara threw her hand against the wall as she fell against it.

"The dimensioning forces this deep in the TARDIS, they can make you a bit giddy." The Doctor explained calmly. But like Aderyn, he was worried. The Doctor slipped an arm around Clara's shoulder, pulling her close to him, and guiding her slowly along.

"I know," She said suddenly, pulling away from the Doctor "How do I know that?"

"Clara, it's ok. You're fine." Aderyn said soothingly. She held her hand out towards Clara, reaching for Clara's arm. But Clara moved away from her.

"Have we done this before?" She stammered. Aderyn looked at the Doctor. She knew this wasn't the time or the place to deal with this. But she had come to know what Clara was like. Clara would demand answers. Clara saw the look that Aderyn gave the Doctor and knew she was right "We have. We've done this before, climbing through a wrecked TARDIS. And you said things," She met Aderyn's gaze "You said things I'm not supposed to remember. But I remember."

"We can't do this now. The TARDIS is a ruin, the telepathic circuits are awakening memories you shouldn't even have." The Doctor said quickly. But Clara hadn't heard him. She had a glazed expression and was staring at nothing in particular.

"Clara?" Aderyn put a gentle hand on Clara's shoulder. Clara didn't hear her. She remembered. She remembered the ruined TARDIS they had climbed through, she remembered Aderyn loosing her temper (not that that was an unusual occurrence for Aderyn when Clara was in the room) and Aderyn demanding answers, wanting to know how she could have met Clara before and how Clara could have died both times.

"Clara?" The Doctor nudged her gently.

"Dalek Asylum. There was a girl there who died," Clara looked up suddenly, meeting Aderyn's guilty expression "Victorian London. There was a governess who was really a barmaid. What did you mean when you said I died?"

"Clara, you shouldn't even remember that conversation. And I'm sorry that you do. But this is neither the time, nor the place. But you will find out soon. I promise." Aderyn said quietly.

"But how can I trust anything you say to me?" Clara shouted.

"You don't have to. The Doctor trusts me, and that should be enough. You have my word that you will find out very soon what all of that was about. I will tell you." Aderyn gingerly held out her hand.

Clara couldn't say for definite that she could trust Aderyn. But there was something in the way she spoke, something in her eyes that made Clara take Aderyn's hand. And as they followed the Doctor along the corridor, neither let go of the other.

"The girl who died he tried to save She'll die again inside his grave."

The Doctor stopped and looked around. There was nothing in the corridor ahead of them, and nothiong behind them. He ran ahead and peered from a small window. The Whispermen were beneath them, looking up at the window.

"Run!" He said.


	9. Fear Is A Powerful Thing

Fear. Fear is a powerful thing. Fear keeps you fast. And scared is a super power. But it can also make you look at things differently, act in a way you wouldn't.

It was fear that kept Clara and Aderyn running, hand in hand, after the Doctor.

And it was fear that made Madame Vastra follow Simeon as he walked through the dying TARDIS. She stopped Jenny and Strax getting too close but kept a close eye on everything that Simeon did. She was unsure as to what his intentions were but there didn't appear to be any desire to inflict harm on Vastra, Jenny or Strax. It appeared that he had intended to get the Doctor's attention. She knew that he would definitely have Aderyn's attention, and there was no way the Doctor would allow Aderyn to come after Jenny without him being there. No doubt Clara would be there as well. She didn't think it would be the best idea to have both Clara and Aderyn in this situation. Aderyn didn't deal well with fear. Fear made her angry. And an angry Aderyn would not be good company when Clara was involved.

When Simeon finally stopped leading the way, they were stood outside a large door.

"The inner sanctum," Simeon declared "The doors require a key. The key is a word. And the word... is the Doctor's." As if sensing that was his cue, the Doctor was suddenly there, Aderyn and Clara close behind him.

Vastra wasn't the only one to notice that Clara was clutching Aderyn's hand. Jenny frowned at the sight. Realising that she was still holding Clara's hand, Aderyn pulled her hand free but didn't make any attempt to put any distance between them.

"Here I am," The Doctor said cheerfully "Late for my own funeral."

Spotting Jenny, stood behind Vastra, Aderyn ran to her and threw her arms around her. "I'm so glad you're not dead." She whispered. Jenny smiled and gave Aderyn's arm a squeeze as she let her go.

"Are you quite finished?" Simeon asked, glaring at Aderyn as she stuffed her hands in her pockets and smiled.

"Yes, sorry. Please carry on." Aderyn said casually.

Simeon straightened the lapels of his coat with a flourish and glared. "Open the door, Doctor. Open your tomb."

The Doctor frowned for a split second as though contemplating the idea "I'm afraid I won't be doing that."

"Because you know what's in there?" Simeon asked.

The Doctor sighed "I will not open that door."

"The key is a word lost to time. A secret hidden in the deepest shadow and known to you alone. The answer to a question!" Simeon spat.

The Doctor strode forward until he was face to face with Simeon "I will not open my tomb."

"Doctor, what is your name?"

The Doctor didn't reply. Simeon looked the Doctor up and down before stepping around him. He walked towards Clara, Aderyn, Jenny, Vastra and Strax. As he approached them, he smiled. Aderyn pulled her hand from her pocket and thrust her sonic screwdriver into Jenny's hand. She also drew her sword, standing forward. She held her sword out and turned to follow Simeon as he strolled around them. When he reached the Doctor again, his smile broadened. He waved his hand and Whispermen appeared, seemingly out of nowhere.

"The Doctor's friends," Simeon met the Doctor's gaze "Stop their hearts."

With a hiss, the Whispermen advanced. Aderyn pushed Clara and Vastra behind them as Jenny ran forward, raising the sonic screwdriver and swinging it around to keep the Whispermen in her sights. Aderyn kept her sword raised and held out in front of her.

"Madam, boys, combat formation! They are unarmed!" Strax said from somewhere behind Vastra. Vastra tried to move in front of Jenny, but Jenny pushed her back.

"We're not much better off." Aderyn snapped. There was no way the two weapons they did have would make any difference to the Whispermen's progress. As one of them got a bit too close for comfort, her fears were confirmed. She swung the sword downwards, slicing effortlessly through the Whisperman's arm. But no sooner had the sword gone through the arm, then any damage it had caused was repaired. However, the Whisperman did slow.

"Please tell me you have a plan?" Jenny said as she and Aderyn began to walk around the group, trying to keep all of the Whispermen in sight and continually pushing Vastra and Strax back into the huddle.

"I'm thinking." Aderyn replied.

"Think quicker." Vastra snapped.

Then something in Aderyn's head slipped neatly into place. Something Simeon had said had given them a way of surviving.

"Got it," She said suddenly "Jenny, Clara, swap places."

Jenny's arm dropped as she turned to face Aderyn and Clara shoved her way passed Vastra to glare at Aderyn "What?" They both said.

Aderyn rolled her eyes "Please just do it."

Knowing that Aderyn must have a plan, and knowing that Aderyn was usually right, Jenny handed the sonic screwdriver to Clara and was pulled backwards by Vastra. Vastra stood in front of Jenny, watching Aderyn. She knew Aderyn would, no doubt, have a plan. But she also knew that Aderyn didn't like Clara.

The Whispermen made no attempt to reach out for either Clara or Aderyn, instead they tried to get around them.

"What am I meant to do with this?" Clara asked shakily, holding the screwdriver out in an uncertain hand.

"Point and think. You need to think of something that will slow them down. They're like the snowmen." Aderyn said.

"What snowmen?" Clara asked.

Aderyn rolled her eyes "Of course, you don't remember that. Just think of them slowing down and hold the button."

"Why do I have the screwdriver?"

"Because I have the sword." Aderyn said. She waved her sword in the air as though trying to prove a point.

"It's useless." Clara snapped.

"Shut up it makes me feel better."

When Aderyn had told Jenny and Clara to swap places, the Doctor turned his head to watch them from the corner of his eye. He did wonder what Aderyn had in mind. He trusted her not to have put Clara in danger for no reason. And he hadn't failed to notice the way the Whispermen seemed to avoid them.

"Stop this!" The Doctor demanded "Leave them alone."

"Answer the question." Simeon said simply.

"No." The Doctor snapped.

One of the Whispermen had managed to pass a hand through Aderyn and was reaching for Jenny. The Doctor turned fully to face the horror unfolding before him "Stop this."

"Doctor Who?"

The Doctor shook his head "Just end this." He watched as Aderyn reached behind her and pushed Jenny away from the probing hand.

Behind him, the door opened.

"Enough!" Simeon snapped.

Aderyn took deep, shuddering breathes as she felt the ice cold chill of the hand being pulled back through her chest.

The Doctor turned slowly, looking through the open door of his own tomb.

Clara was frowning at the Doctor when she heard a quiet whisper next to her ear "The TARDIS can still hear me. Lucky thing, since he is being so useless!"

"Why did you open the door?" Vastra asked.

"I didn't." The Doctor said quietly.

"I did." River said smugly. When Clara looked round at River, she knew that there had only been one reason River had opened the tomb. She was watching Aderyn, who was fussing over Jenny.

"Why did I have to switch places with Jenny?" Clara asked

"We weren't in any danger. In case you didn't notice they never tried to get to us." Aderyn said. She slipped her screwdriver from Clara's grip.

"But why?"

"The Great Intelligence isn't that intelligent. He specified the Doctor's friends. I am a relative. Not a friend." Aderyn explained.

"But what about me?"

Aderyn sighed "Time and place Clara. This is neither. But soon, I promise." Aderyn said. She slowly began to follow the Doctor and Simeon as they walked into the Doctor's tomb.


	10. It Will Destroy The Doctor

**I apologise for how long it has been since I last posted any chapters, but due to internet issues, work and illness it's not been possible. However I do hope that the rest of this story (and, in fact, the rest of this series) is enough to make up for that.**

* * *

"Do you really know what's in here?" The Doctor asked Simeon as they walked.

"For me, peace at last. For you, pain everlasting." Simeon replied.

It was a short walk to the tomb. And when they reached it, there were audible gasps of awe.

Before them was the TARIDS console room. But where the console should have stood, glistening tendrils of light twisted and writhed in a column.

"What's that?" Clara breathed.

"What were you expecting?" The Doctor asked pointedly "A body? Bodies are boring. I've had loads of them. That's not what my tomb is for."

"Then what is it?"

"It's time," Aderyn said quietly "It's his time."

"Please leave the poetry behind and just tell them." Simeon snapped.

"Time travel is damage. It's like a tear in the fabric of reality. That is the scar tissue of my journey through the universe. My path through time and space, from Gallifrey to Trenzalore." The Doctor explained.

"It's his time stream." River said. Clara gasped.

"My own personal time tunnel, all the days," The Doctor said weakly "Even the ones that haven't happened yet." The Doctor took a deep, shuddering breath before he fell to the floor.

Clara and Aderyn were the first to reach him.

"What's happening?" Clara asked.

"The reason you should never visit your own grave," Aderyn explained "It's the paradox."

"It's very not good." The Doctor mumbled.

Simeon took a step closer to the Doctor's time stream. "The Doctor's life is an open wound. And an open wound can be entered."

"It will destroy you." Aderyn said.

"Not at all. It will kill me. It will destroy the Doctor. I can rewrite his every living moment. I can turn every one of his victories into defeats. Poison every friendship. Deliver pain to his every breath." Simeon said.

Although she knew it was a pointless action, Aderyn didn't know what else to do. As Simeon took another step towards the light, Aderyn sprang from her feet, sword in hand and dashed towards him. She swung the sword in a deadly upwards motion. But she had misjudged how quickly Simeon could move. Before she had a chance to complete the swing, Simeon grabbed the sword from her hand and drove it into her abdomen.

"Doctor, You thwarted me at every turn. Now, you will give me peace, as I take my revenge on every second of your life! Goodbye Doctor." Simeon ripped the sword from Aderyn's flesh and let it clatter to the floor. He took a handkerchief from his pocket, wiping Aderyn's blood from his hands as he stepped into the Doctor's time stream. The Whispermen that waited outside the tomb disappeared. As the light consumed Simeon, he screamed. On the floor, the Doctor gasped and cried in pain. Aderyn dropped to her knees, one hand clutching at the wound, trying to stem the flow of blood.


	11. Getting Shorter In Slow Motion

Jenny and Vastra ran to Aderyn. Vastra tore a strip from the bottom of her dress and tied it around Aderyn, desperately hoping a tourniquet would slow the stream of blood.

The brilliant white light of the Doctor's time stream changed to a deep red.

"What's happening?" Clara cried.

"Simeon is attacking his entire time line. He's dying all at once." Aderyn gasped.

As the Doctor continued to cry out and scream, Vastra left Jenny holding onto Aderyn and knelt next to him.

"A universe without the Doctor," She muttered "There will be consequences."

Aderyn coughed and spat a mouthful of blood onto the floor.

"Shouldn't you have started regenerating by now?" Jenny asked.

This was not the ideal situation to be in. Aderyn knew that Jenny wouldn't have mentioned regeneration unless she was worried. She could hear the fear in Jenny's voice. She wanted to get up and leave the room, leave this place behind, find a safe place to go. She would never think to regenerate in the TARDIS, she didn't know what could happen. But she needed to be out of here, needed to be away from Clara.

"I'm too close. My time streams are going mental." She managed to say between coughs.

Vastra looked up at her sharply "Time streams? I thought one of them was erased after you went to Bad Wolf Bay."

"No, not erased. Just dormant. Until now." Aderyn was able to pull herself to her feet, leaning heavily on Jenny. She pushed herself away and leant against a wall, retching heavily.

"What are we going to do?" Clara sobbed.

"WE are going to do nothing. But I am going to sort this out. If I get done anyway." Aderyn snapped.

"Done what?" Clara demanded. She couldn't hide her own fear and frustration at what was going on. She felt very out of her depth.

"Regenerating," River explained "She's the Doctor's daughter so she's part Time Lord. But if she tries to do something now, then she'll die before she can do anything. And she won't regenerate."

"What are you going to do?" Vastra asked.

"Someone has to get in there and sort it out." Aderyn replied firmly, before she doubled over and started to heave dryly.

"No. Don't to that." The Doctor groaned.

"You've saved me so many times, Doctor. And in so many different ways. Now it's my turn." Aderyn turned away from everyone, embarrassed by her own sentimentality.

"Addy, don't. You won't get out again."

Aderyn shook her head sadly and turned to look at the Doctor "That doesn't matter. A world without the Doctor. You may not see the difference you make, but we all do. Without you there is no me. So either way I'm a goner."

Clara turned her head ever so slightly towards River and whispered "What will happen if she goes in there?"

"The time winds will tear her into a million pieces. A million versions of her, living and dying all over time and space, like echoes." River said quickly.

Aderyn pushed herself away from the wall and was glad when Jenny's outstretched arms where there before she had the chance to trip over her own feet.

"But the echoes will save the Doctor." She shouted. She blissfully missed the confused frowns that passed between Vastra, Jenny, Strax and Clara.

"But they won't be you. The real you will die. They'll just be copies," River yelled desperately. She then paused, mouth open in shock "Can you hear me?"

"Yes. Now if you're not going to be helpful then shut up I'm thinking," Aderyn waved her hand in River's general direction. To the Doctor, Jenny, Vastra and Strax, it looked like she was talking to a wall. "Great, now it looks like I'm talking to myself."

"That's nothing new." Jenny joked.

Aderyn allowed herself a smile then drew her sonic screwdriver from her pocket "Sometimes I'm not talking to myself. Sometimes, just sometimes, it's enough to know that someone is listening. And if I can find the right setting, you'll see what I mean." Propped up by Jenny, Aderyn frantically changed the settings on the sonic screwdriver.

"I thought you just had to point and think." Clara said.

Aderyn shook her head "Somethings are a bit more complicated then that." She pointed the screwdriver at River, who flickered for a second, before becoming visible to everyone.

"I'm not really here. How can you hear or see me?" River asked.

Aderyn shrugged "I always could. You're still connected to the TARDIS. And the TARDIS looks after her children. To me, you were always here. I could always see you when I needed you. And I always listened. Didn't always agree with what you said. But I listened."

River stormed up to Aderyn and squared up to her "Then listen to me now. The Doctor is right. If you go in there, you won't come out again. You will die."

"Does no one listen anymore? I'm dead either way. Without the Doctor there is no me, there will be no Jenny and no Clara." Aderyn yelled.

It was just too difficult for River to see Aderyn like this. To see her clearly dying and no signs of regeneration was a struggle. To know that if she did regenerate, she would die anyway was just as difficult. For River to know that she could do nothing about it was heartbreaking. She turned away from Aderyn and looked into the Doctor's time stream.

Clara clenched her jaw then spoke with defiance "Then let me do it. You said I'd died before saving the Doctor. So let me do it."

"I can't let you do that. Yes it was you that saved him in the Dalek Asylum. And you died in Victorian London. But it wasn't you." Aderyn said.

Clara frowned "You're not making sense."

Aderyn shrugged "Who knows, I may never make sense again." Aderyn's collapse was so sudden that Jenny didn't have a chance to break her fall. Aderyn curled herself into the foetal position, cursing under her breath "The kidneys are always the first to go. And a heart as well apparently."

"If you only have one working heart, do you really think it's a good idea to go in there?" River said.

"I didn't mean that only one heart is working, I meant I only have one heart now. The regeneration process is too slow. This should all have happened at the same time. I'm too close to my own time stream," Aderyn struggled to her feet, desperately clinging to Jenny, but no matter how much she tried, the pain in her legs was too severe. "God damn it. I'm getting shorter in slow motion. Why do you have to be so short, Clara?" When she did manage to regain her balance, no one failed to notice the change. Despite being slightly hunched with pain, she somehow stood taller. There was something different about her eyes as well. There was a defiance behind them and they were a deeper shade of green.

"What's my height go to do with this? And what is going on?" Clara asked, becoming more frantic.

The Doctor had stopped crying and screaming, but even in his weakened state, unable to sit up, the Doctor had rolled onto his side as was watching Aderyn. He couldn't fail to noticed the change in her and had some hope that he could appeal to the right person "Go, Oswin. Just run."

"No. I can't do that. Unfortunately, Aderyn is right. I have two time streams and one of them is meant to end today," Oswin said firmly "Clara, Aderyn promised you an explanation and I'm going to tell all while I have the chance. I'm sorry but you're not who you think you are. You were there at the Dalek Asylum. You saved the Doctor. But you went by the name Oswin Oswald. Victorian London, you were a Governess and barmaid, you battled the Great Intelligence with the Doctor and you died. He blamed himself, Aderyn blamed herself but you were never meant to survive. Your name then was Clara Oswin Oswald. You choose those names so he would listen, so he would pay attention to you. You knew he would listen because Oswin is a name I use myself," She could feel the regeneration process becoming quicker. She was certain the bleeding had stopped but she was still struggling to stand up without being held by Jenny. "And this is where it gets far more complicated and a lot more confusing. You are not Oswin Oswald, or Clara Oswin Oswald or even Clara Oswald. You are Oswin, otherwise known as Aderyn Oswin Tyler," Jenny recognised the signs as regeneration energy began to form around Oswin. She took a step back, letting go of her as the regeneration energy took over. Vastra did her best to shield Jenny from the bright light and River turned Clara away. When the light died, they turned back to Aderyn. But where Aderyn, or Oswin, had stood, Clara was looking back at them "And you were born to save the Doctor," she winked at River then looked down at the Doctor "Doctor, don't do anything stupid. Run, run you clever boy and remember."

She stepped into the red glow of the Doctor's time stream before anyone could stop her.


	12. River Can Fly Her

She fell. She was everywhere and nowhere. She was whole and she was broken. As she fell she saw the Doctor everywhere. One minute she was there with him, shouting for him, hoping he would hear her. Then she was chasing him, searching for him. Every time she saw him, she called after him. But he never heard her. Well, almost never.

She followed him around a corner in a Victorian London street and called out to him. He heard her. She called out to the Doctor as he went to step into a TARDIS. She knew this was the Doctor. But physically he looked so old. This was so far back in his own time stream that he hadn't even left Gallifrey yet. As he went to pass through the door of the TARDIS, she seized her chance.

"Doctor?"

The Doctor turned "Yes, what is it? What do you want?"

"Sorry. But you're about to make a very big mistake. Don't steal that one, steal this one," She leant against a TARDIS "The navigation system's knackered, but you'll have much more fun."

Right from the start she had been there, without him even realising it was her. She found him and did whatever she could to undo whatever Simeon had put into motion.

And then she was falling again. Falling without an end.  
_

The change in the Doctor and Clara was quick. The Doctor was able to get to his feet, back to his normal self, within a short amount of time. And Clara began to fail. She swayed as she stood and was overcome with a dizziness. It wasn't long before she fainted. The Doctor paid little attention to this development. He let Vastra and River fuss over Clara and paced around the light of his time stream. He couldn't loose Aderyn. He would not allow that to happen. Jenny certainly wasn't going to allow it. She ignored Clara's predicament and watched the Doctor's time stream. He got the distinct impression that she was resisting the urge to go in head first and drag Aderyn out. But he wasn't willing to let her go in there as well. That would definitely kill her. She didn't have the same chance of surviving that Aderyn had. Because there _was_ a chance that Aderyn would have survived. Her Time Lord DNA would have given her a chance. Though that chance would be a slim one. As he paced around he threw Jenny a stern look. It was clearly a look that said 'don't try it'. She nodded when he passed. He stopped worrying, knowing that she wasn't going to do anything.

"What's happened to the boy?" Strax asked.

"A paradox." The Doctor said, without looking around at her.

"She'll be fine. Her time stream is being rewritten. Everything she thought she was is suddenly becoming true." River said.

"Am I the only one that's confused?" Jenny sighed.

"No." The Doctor admitted.

"Aderyn and Oswin. Everyone assumed that Oswin was just who Aderyn was going to become. But that was far from the truth. Aderyn and Oswin are one and the same. Two people in one body. One of her time streams ends today. The other carries on. Aderyn didn't become Oswin. One of them ended and one carried on. One became Clara, the other made that possible." River explained.

"I can't let that happen." The Doctor said.

"One of her time streams is meant to end today, Doctor. It's a fixed point. You can't change that." River said. No one saw her smile to herself as she watched the Doctor start pacing again. She could almost see the ideas flowing through his mind, could almost imagine the Doctor turning everything she just said, over and over, examining it for any flaw, anything that would mean he could save Aderyn.

"You said one of Aderyn's time stream ends. But what if it just stops being Aderyn's time stream. It ends, but it ends being her's and takes on a life of it's own," The Doctor mused "Vastra, Jenny, get everyone back to the TARDIS. Wait for a bit. If I'm not back, River can fly her."

River marched up to the Doctor and thumped his shoulder "You can't go in there. It's your own time stream."

"I have to get her back." The Doctor snapped.

"Of course," River said, offended that the Doctor even implied that she hadn't thought the same thing "But not like this."

"Is she still alive? It killed Dr Simeon." Vastra asked.

"She has one advantage that the Great Intelligence never had." The Doctor said.

"What's that?" Jenny asked.

"ME!" With that the Doctor stepped forward and was soon lost in the blinding light of his own time stream.


	13. Not In The Name Of The Doctor

She closed her eyes. She was falling again. Somehow she knew this was it. And she accepted that.

 _I don't know where I am. I don't know where I'm going, or where I've been. I was the born to save the Doctor, but the Doctor is safe now. I'm the Impossible Girl and my story is done._ she thought.

And she stopped falling. She opened her eyes. The light was the same dim as a winter evening. A heavy mist shrouded every thing around her. She didn't know where she was, or even who she was. She didn't think she was Oswin anymore. But there was still something very un-Clara like about her. That's not who she was just yet.

She curled into a ball on the ground and cried "I don't know where I am." Then she heard it. With her ear this close to the ground she could hear thudding vibrations as someone, or something, started running towards her.

"Clara, you can hear me. I know you can."

She looked up and all around her. But where was the Doctor. She could hear him. She could hear him all around her as though the mist was his voice.

"I can't see you." She said.

"I'm everywhere. You're inside my time stream. Everything around you is me." As his words echoed around her, she saw him, every single one of him, all around her, running. He emerged from the mist before disappearing into it again. Every face he had ever worn ran passed her.

"I can see you. All your different faces," She spun on the spot watching as another Doctor ran passed her "They're here."

"They're my ghosts," The Doctor explained "My past. Every good day, every bad day."

What she had assumed was the sky, darkened and thunder clapped.

"What's happening?" She asked.

"I'm inside my own time stream. It's collapsing in on itself."

"Then get out." She shouted at the sky.

"Not until I've got you."

"I don't even know who I am." She cried.

"You're my Impossible Girl. Now look around, you'll find me. I'm here." The Doctor's voice suddenly became clearer as though he were behind her.

She turned around and saw him in the mist. She staggered towards him, but every step was difficult. Her legs felt heavy and she had to drag her feet towards the Doctor.

"Come on, you can reach me. I know you can." He encouraged.

"How?" She whispered.

"Because it's impossible and you are impossible."

She could see his outstretched hands but she felt like she'd never reach him. It was becoming more difficult to move.

When she did reach him, he had his arms out, waiting for her to fall into them. He held her, not knowing what else to do. He knew he had to get out, but to get out and have two Clara's? That could lead to trouble. But he couldn't loose Aderyn. He refused to do that. He slowly let her go, but wrapped an arm around her waist. He guided her along. But she stopped him.

"Who's that?" She asked weakly, pointing at a figure ahead of them. Whoever it was, had their back to them.

"He's me. There's only me here. Now come on." He pulled her along again, slightly quicker this time.

"But I never saw that one. I saw all of you. But not him. Eleven faces, all of you. You're the eleventh Doctor."

"I said he was me. I never said he was the Doctor." The Doctor looked at her and could see that he needed to get her out of here soon, very soon.

She rubbed her forehead "I don't understand."

Wanting to move quicker, the Doctor stopped moving long enough to scoop her up and carry her passed the waiting figure "The name I chose is the Doctor. The name you choose is like a promise you make. He's the one that broke the promise."

The figure turned as the Doctor walked passed "What I did, I did without choice. In the name of peace and sanity."

"But not in the name of the Doctor." The Doctor looked away from him and walked quickly. He looked down at the woman in his arms. He really had no idea what would happen to Aderyn and Clara when he got out of his time stream and back to Trenzalore. There would be two Clara's. But River had said that one of Aderyn's time streams had to end. The Doctor had worked it out. Oswin would no longer be part of Aderyn. It was Aderyn he had in his arms now. Oswin had regenerated, had become Clara. Aderyn only looked like Clara now because it's impossible for a mind to regenerate without the body. Aderyn would be fine if he could just get her out of here. He believed all he had to do was get her somewhere safe and she would regenerate again, be Aderyn once again. Okay, so it was more of a hope then a belief. But he had to try something.


	14. Absence Of A Voice

Vastra and Jenny paced around the outside of TARDIS. They had all silently decided that they wouldn't go anywhere just yet. They would wait for as long as possible for the Doctor. They knew that the Doctor would do everything in his power to save Aderyn. That much was obvious. But how long it would take him, they couldn't guess.

With the TARDIS door open, River watched Vastra and Jenny. Both were on edge and Strax hadn't helped matters much. He had made his usual weapon based suggestions, mostly about going into the Doctor's time stream and then fighting their way out. But Vastra had put an end to such talk and he was now sitting in a moody silence, staring longingly out of the door towards the dying TARDIS. River knew she probably should be feeling far more anxious then she was. But she couldn't. Somehow, she knew that Aderyn would be fine. She had near enough given the Doctor the answer. He had been right when he said that she could survive. The only factor that was causing River's nervousness was that it had been a while since he had gone into his time stream. There was only a limited amount of time that Aderyn would have before passing the point of no return, and with the Doctor in his own time stream, the window of time to get out was shorter. She glanced at Clara, who had be led gently on the chair by the console. She was still breathing, although her breathing had slowed.

"Doctor!"

River was at the TARDIS door before Vastra had even finished shouting. She saw the Doctor walking towards them, Aderyn in his arms. As he neared the TARDIS, they could see fear in his eyes. Vastra took Aderyn from him and laid her on the ground. It was strange to look down at her and see Clara's face. But it was still her. As her skin began to glow golden, Vastra pushed the Doctor, Jenny and River back into the TARDIS and slammed the door.

This would be the second regeneration within an hour and she had no idea what that could do to her. Plus Vastra had noticed that Aderyn was no longer breathing. If the regeneration didn't go as it should, then the Doctor shouldn't see that. Besides, the Doctor had to think about Clara as well.

River had done her best to explain what was happening and, although she had understood, it made no sense.

Aderyn's two time streams had separated, one becoming Clara and the other one allowing that to happen. The Doctor had been right when he said that one of the time streams stops being Aderyn's and carried on as Clara. But as Clara was already there, that's when it became complicated. Everything Clara believed her life to be was suddenly becoming reality. Oswin had become Clara and Aderyn had just been caught in the crossfire of it. Another regeneration close to Clara, could kill them both. But with Clara inside the TARDIS, there was some hope that at least one of them would make it out alive.  
_

Where there had been darkness, was a bright light. Where there had been confusion, everything suddenly became clear. She was no longer unaware of who she was. She knew she was Aderyn Oswin Tyler, daughter of Rose Tyler and the Doctor, child of the TARDIS, widow of River Song. Member of the Paternoster Peculiars, part time member of UNIT (she probably should mention that to the Doctor at some point) and she was pushed through a crack in time when she was a baby so she could save the Doctor. And she HAD saved the Doctor.

Breaths came suddenly and the cold air felt like daggers in her lungs. She made a mental note that regenerating while unconscious was considerably more comfortable and opened her eyes. The relieved face of Madame Vastra looked down at her.

"Back with us at last."

Aderyn sat up "The jury's still out on that one. But how is the Doctor?"

Vastra pulled her to her feet "He's fine. He's in the TARDIS. Are you ok?"

Aderyn shrugged. She put her hand up to her face and froze. Ah, she had almost assumed that she would look like she used to after that regeneration, but she was wrong. She grabbed her phone from her pocket and checked her reflection in the screen. Her face was longer and thinner, one eye was still a brilliant green while the other was a stormy blue-grey. Her hair was shorter and curly, but still a dark brown. She looked down at her feet. She was definitely taller and her legs and arms were thin and long. She no longer looked like the Doctor and she wasn't sure how she felt about that.

"What's that noise?" She asked suddenly, looking around.

"What noise?" Vastra frowned.

"All the noises. It's so noisy out here." Aderyn said quietly.

Vastra listened. There were no unusual noises that she could hear. She could hear the wind, the small noises coming from inside the TARDIS, even the sound of her own breathing, but she couldn't figure out what Aderyn was hearing that she wasn't.

Aderyn's face fell as she realised that it wasn't the general noises of life she was hearing that was different, it was what she wasn't hearing. She couldn't hear the small voice in the back of her head that she usually tried to ignore, the voice she had so frequently associated with Oswin.


	15. She Would Be His Priority

Neither the Doctor nor Clara were in the console room when Aderyn and Vastra entered the TARDIS. But Aderyn was thankful of that. She felt exhausted and just wanted to sleep. She also knew that this could well be the last time she saw River. Before she had chance to go to River, Jenny and Vastra began to fuss over her. No matter how much she told them she was fine, they didn't listen. By the time she brushed them off, River was gone.

With a sigh, she sat down and succumbed to Jenny's mothering, Vastra's stern words on how stupid she had been to go into the Doctor's time stream and Strax's need to know how she fought her way out.

When the Doctor reappeared in the console room, he barely spoke a word. He smiled happily at Aderyn and squeezed her shoulder gently as he walked passed her to the console.

"Right then, Vastra, Jenny, Strax. Thank you for all your help in this but I think it's time to go home." The Doctor muttered.

They left the TARDIS in silence as once they landed in the drawing room of Paternoster Row.

As Aderyn moved to follow the others, the Doctor grabbed hold of her arm. When the door was closed her let go.

"What you did was really stupid," He said quietly "I am grateful you did. But I would prefer it if you didn't do anything like that again. It was too dangerous."

"Doctor, I can't promise I won't. I'm too much like you. I see what's happening and go in for the only solution that will fix the problem. Even if it is a dangerous one. There were too many things at stake to run away. Like I said, you may not see the difference you make. But we all do. And not just to the universe, but to people. I dread to think where I would be now without you."

"But you need to be careful. I can't loose you."

Neither being one for showing this level of emotion towards the other, they both instantly felt awkward. Aderyn shuffled her feet and the Doctor stared down at the console.

"How is Clara?" Aderyn asked eventually as she pulled open the TARDIS door.

"She'll be ok. She won't remember everything that happened, but she'll remember enough." The Doctor replied.

"Good." Aderyn said as she closed the door behind her. She didn't look back at the TARDIS as she heard the engines start. She knew she wouldn't see the Doctor again for a while. Clara would be his priority now. As much as she wanted to stay in the TARDIS and hide away, she knew it wouldn't be a good idea to be around Clara right now. The Doctor would answer any questions she has and, truth be told, she had no idea what would happen if she was there while her's and Clara's timelines adjusted.

Vastra knew Aderyn too well. As soon as she was able, she set Aderyn to work on a few investigations. It was best to keep her busy until she was ready to talk.

But the days passed and Aderyn didn't say a word about the events of Trenzalore.


	16. Say Goodbye This Time

As soon as the house was quiet, Aderyn pulled open her bedroom door. She listened. She couldn't hear Vastra and Jenny talking in their room or Strax stomping around the house. She closed the door quietly and crept passed Vastra and Jenny's room and slipped silently down the stairs.

When she reached Vastra's study, she moved quickly. She hated being in here without Vastra, or her permission. The study was the only room Vastra had to herself. No one else really went in here without orders. Aderyn felt like she was trespassing. When Aderyn pulled open a desk drawer, she quickly found what she was looking for. It was a long, thin candle. When she closed the drawer again, her attention was caught by two frames on the desk. One held the sketch of Jenny and Vastra that Aderyn had given her from Christmas the year before. The other was a photo of Jenny and Aderyn. It was an old photo that had been taken when Jenny had spent some time in the TARDIS. These were clearly two pictures that Vastra treasured. The glass of the frames was clean and the frames themselves were dust free. While everything else on the desk was jumbled and cluttered, the pictures looked like they didn't belong.

As she closed the study door behind her, she listened. She expected Vastra to come down the stairs and shout at her for going into the study or, worse, tell her she was disappointed in her. After a few moments of breath held quiet, she went into the library.

All things considered, she should really dislike libraries. But the TARDIS library was a comfort to her, and the library at Paternoster Row held too many fond memories. This was always her favourite place to go. She breathed in the smell of the old books that lined the walls and felt instantly calmer.

She knew the conference calls were meant to be for emergencies only, but she knew it was the only place she would have enough peace and quiet to think, the only place she would feel alone enough to come to terms with everything that had happened. She knew that Vastra would rather she spoke about it, and Jenny had tried several times to get her to talk about it. She knew she probably should. But she couldn't. She didn't know how to put into words everything she was feeling. She needed time to think about it, time to figure out what it was she was actually feeling and thinking.

She plumped the cushions on her favourite sofa and settled herself comfortably as she watched the flame of the candle before sleep took it's hold.  
_

Aderyn kicked her chair backwards and crossed her arms on the table. She rested her chin on her arms and looked out across the table, through the magnificent archways, into the swirls of colour beyond. Vastra had certainly chosen well with this call room. She had grown bored of the Taj Mahal but struggled to take her eyes away from the bright colours that illuminated the room. Eventually she closed her eyes and sighed heavily. There was nothing but silence and stillness around her, though she could still smell the old paper smell from the library. A small noise, close by, caused her eyes to snap open. There was a flute of champagne in front of her, and in her peripheral vision, she could see River.

"I thought you could do with a drink." River said, sitting lightly in the chair next to Aderyn.

Aderyn sat up and picked up the glass, draining it in one gulp. "Thanks." She muttered.

"Looks like I was right about that drink," River said, shoving another glass into Aderyn's hand. "Are you okay?"

Once again, Aderyn gulped the drink in seconds "I don't know. But I spoke to the Doctor and Clara is doing well. As for me, I really don't know. It's just so scary."

"What is?" River asked patiently.

Aderyn sighed "Clara doesn't remember much. She knows that, albeit just by technicality, she was the one that went into the Doctor's time stream. And she remembers that, she remembers being in his time stream. But I can remember everything about it. The pain of such a slow regeneration, the fear of not knowing where I was, or who I was. I was nowhere and everywhere all at once, I was me and I was Oswin and I was her. And I was scared, terrified really."

River put a hand on Aderyn's shoulder "Scared keeps you fast." She said.

"The funny thing is, I always wondered what it would be like to not have Oswin there, not have her nagging me or pointing out exactly what I was doing wrong. Now she's not there I wish she was."

"I wish I could have done all of that instead of you." River whispered.

"But you couldn't because you weren't really there. Like you're not really here now."

"Oz, I'm sorry. I did what I did at the library to keep you alive."

Aderyn let out a long breath "I know. I hear you and I see you but you're never really there. You're only there because the TARDIS makes me think you are. I miss you."

"I miss you too."

Aderyn cleared her throat "What's it like in the library?"

River smiled sadly "Quiet. Too quiet. I never thought I'd stop running," She reached out and took Aderyn's hand. Aderyn looked round at her "I don't have much time left. I have to go. Say goodbye this time."

Tears prickled behind Aderyn's eyes "I don't know how."

"Like you mean it. Like it's the last time you will ever see me. Because, my darling Oz, this is the last chance I have to hear you say goodbye."

Aderyn shook her head "I don't like endings."

River cupped Aderyn's cheek and wiped away a tear with her thumb "Everything ends. There is a time to live and a time to sleep. I'm just an echo. I'm not really here. I ended a long time ago. So please, say goodbye like you really mean it."

"Don't say that. I don't want to say goodbye. You were always there for me, even after you died you were there. I don't want to have a life without you."

River looked deep into her eyes "You were the little bird with the broken wing. But now you're all better. You don't need me."

Aderyn put her hand over River's "I always need you."

River sighed "No, you don't. If you need someone you have the Doctor, and Jenny and Madame Vastra. So say it like you mean it. Say goodbye this time."

Aderyn let go of River's hand. She knew she had no choice. "Professor River Song. I love you. Goodbye."

River leant forwards and Aderyn closed her eyes. She felt River's lips against her forehead and heard her whisper "I love you." Then she was gone. Aderyn couldn't feel her there anymore. She didn't open her eyes. She raised a hand, lightly brushing her fingertips against where River's hand had been. Tears collected on her eyelashes as she let out a single, pained sob. Within mere moments, she shut herself down. She didn't care what happened anymore. She knew that River had been right. That was the last time she would ever see her. She leant back in her chair and waited for the inevitable wave of emotions to wash over her. But she didn't feel anything.

Well nothing emotionally. She could feel her body moving, although she was still sat down. She hated it when that happened. When she had first been part of a conference call, her mind had rejected the idea and she had woken up attempting to run. Vastra had helped her combat this. She had taught Aderyn how to stay connected to her body even though she was asleep. Consequently, she was aware of what was happening to her sleeping form at all times when she was in a conference call. And right now, she knew she was walking somewhere. When she stopped, she could feel a cool breeze on her uncovered arms and she suspected she had walked out of Paternoster Row. She was most likely in the garden. Then the walking started again and the cool breeze vanished. Aderyn knew that, whatever happened, she was safe. She opened her eyes, pushed her chair back and curled up under the table. She closed her eyes, threw her arms over her head and felt nothing but numbness.


	17. If I Don't Sleep Then I Don't Dream

Aderyn woke but didn't open her eyes. An intense sadness burned through her. She had dreamt about River again, about saying goodbye. This wasn't the first time she had dreamt about her since Trenzalore and it got more painful every time. She kept her eyes tightly shut. Not wanting to open them and confirm that River wasn't there. She could feel a warm body next to her own and a strong hand covering hers. There was hair wrapped around the fingers of the hand that wasn't covered. It was soft unlike her own matted hair. Her other hand held a fistful of fabric. She heard a rhythmic whoosh and thump and for a second she wondered if she was back in the TARDIS. But memories came flooding back and she remembered she was at Paternoster Row. She opened her eyes and was greeted with by a cascade of long, dark hair covering her face. Her vision focused and through the hair she could make out the small details of the room she was in. She knew instantly she was in her own room. And the noises she could hear was the sound of a heartbeat and gentle breathing. She knew she had been in a conference call. She was confused as to why she wasn't on the sofa in the library where she had fallen asleep, until she realised that the movement she had felt meant she must have been sleepwalking again. And once again it would appear that Jenny had taken her back to bed and fallen asleep next to her. Aderyn's ear was pressed against Jenny's back, she had her head on her forearm, the fingers of that hand tangled in Jenny's hair. Her other hand was clutching for dear life to Jenny's night dress. Jenny's hand covered hers.

Moving carefully and slowly, she was able to disentangle herself and climb out of bed without disturbing Jenny. The door creaked slightly as she pulled it open. She turned, making sure Jenny was still asleep, before slipping into the hall. She found her jacket by the door and threw it over her shoulders, glad to find she still had a packet of cigarettes in the pocket. She walked through the dark, quiet house and out into the back garden. The night was crisp, the cool air hitting her like a wave. The dark sky was cloudless and the stars looked unnaturally bright. The moonlight illuminated the still garden. She settled herself into one of the comfortable wicker chairs that Strax had brought out from the conservatory the previous day. She lit a cigarette, glad of the chance to be alone for once. As she took a drag she chuckled to herself, remembering the disapproving, almost disgusted look that the Doctor would give her whenever she had taken a cigarette out of the packet she constantly had stashed in one of her pockets. But the thought of the Doctor brought further pain. He had left her here, taken Clara but left her. He hadn't come back for her. That had been a few weeks ago and she had only heard from him once. He had phoned just to see how she was doing. The conversation had only lasted ten minutes. He said he'd had to go because Clara had woken up. Clara. It was all about how Clara was coping. Never mind the fact that Aderyn had only slept a handful of times. And those times her sleep had been disturbed, frequently haunted by dreams about River. On a couple of occasions, Jenny had woken her and she had been confused to find herself in places other than her bed. Aderyn had overheard Jenny talking to Vastra about it. Jenny had given up waking her when she was sleep walking. Instead opting to take Aderyn back to bed and staying with her until she had settled back into a restless sleep. More then once Aderyn had woken to find Jenny either curled up in bed next to her or asleep in the armchair.

Madame Vastra walked silently over the cold floor. She had found Jenny in Aderyn's room, exactly where she had expected her to be. But Aderyn was nowhere to be seen. She knew that Aderyn would have been sleepwalking again and that Jenny would have fallen asleep keeping an eye on her. Jenny was still asleep in Aderyn's bed, so Vastra knew that Aderyn was not sleepwalking again. When she was sleepwalking, Aderyn was clumsy and heavy footed, and would have easily woken Jenny. That meant that Aderyn was awake. As she walked through the conservatory she saw thin, grey smoke rising from one of the high backed chairs and she breathed a sigh of relief.

Aderyn didn't hear Vastra approach and she jumped violently as Vastra put two cups on a small table. and waved her hand for Aderyn to take one. She pulled one of the chairs closer, sitting comfortably next to Aderyn.

In silence they stared into the dark garden, watching moths flutter and a fox creep silently out of one of the hedges, spot them then run across the grass, diving into another hedge. When the night life became boring Vastra sighed and turned to Aderyn "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I don't know," Aderyn replied softly "It still feels like a dream. But I can't say my dreams are any better."

Vastra regarded her carefully. She wasn't sure how to go on. The Doctor had once again left them to look after Aderyn. She didn't mind really. She had grown accustomed to having Aderyn around, and maybe a break from the hectic life in the TARDIS was what she needed. She was sure this was a conversation that Aderyn would be more comfortable having with Jenny, but Jenny needed sleep as much as Aderyn did. Vastra had noticed how tired and withdrawn Jenny was becoming, constantly worrying about Aderyn and awake most of the night in case Aderyn started sleepwalking. She took a deep breath before continuing.

"I don't know what's going through your head. So you'll have to tell me. You need to talk about these things."

Aderyn looked at her. Even in the dead of night, in a situation she was clearly uncomfortable in, Madame Vastra still managed to maintain a sense of poise and dignity. Aderyn envied that slightly.

"I'm fine. Really." Aderyn lied.

Vastra frowned at her "I may not know much about how humans work, but tell me anyway."

Aderyn picked up a cup, grateful for the warmth of the tea in the cold evening. "I don't know how I feel. I'm angry and I'm not. I'm hurt but I'm fine," She kicked off her slippers and tucked her feet underneath herself. For a moment, Vastra wasn't sure whether Aderyn was going to continue talking. She was once again staring out across the garden. "Once again he left me here. Like it was nothing. He left me here and Clara is more important to him. This isn't the first time he's left me here when I needed him."

Madame Vastra smiled. She really didn't know much about how people worked. But she knew how others could feel about loved ones. Since she had first met Aderyn, when Aderyn had been quite young, the Doctor had made sure that Aderyn had a friend and a safe place. He had made sure Jenny and Aderyn had built a bond. And they really had. The pair had become very close friends. Almost inseparable. She sighed. Aderyn really couldn't see what the Doctor was actually doing.

Vastra put a kind hand on Aderyn's arm "He's not leaving you here because he doesn't care. He's leaving you here because he cares."

Aderyn frowned "Does he really?"

Vastra smiled "He does. He left you here so you could be with a friend and be safe. There isn't anyone he can leave Clara with that will know what to do. Right now your time stream is still unstable. It could be dangerous having both of you in the TARDIS at once. Even I can see that he doesn't want to risk loosing you. Not now, not ever."

"But I needed him when Amy and Rory left. And when River went to the library. Yet I ended up here."

Vastra regarded her with a look that anyone who didn't know her, would describe as motherly concern. For Vastra, it was just a look of concern. This was going to be harder then she thought. She sighed and stood "This is going to require a pot of tea rather then a cup." She strode back into the house, the flurry of her dress caused a pleasant breeze, not as cold as the night air. When she returned, Aderyn had started a second cigarette. Vastra put the tray down and carefully poured the tea.

"I'm not as good as Jenny when it comes to making tea I'm afraid." she said.

Aderyn smiled "I don't think it would be fair to wake her just to make tea. She needs sleep."

"As do you."

"If I don't sleep then I don't dream." Aderyn said.

"What do you dream about?" Vastra once again settled into the chair.

"River, the library, the Doctor." Aderyn replied.

"You saw River die, you knew it was going to happen." Vastra said soothingly.

"That doesn't make it easier. I didn't know her that well then. And all the times I saw her I knew that's what she was heading for. And I never said goodbye. Goodbye was too final." By the time she stopped talking, Aderyn's voice had become a hoarse whisper.

"Do you think it would have made a difference if you said goodbye any of the other times you saw her?"

Aderyn shook her head, paused, then shrugged "I don't know. Maybe it would have. Maybe it would have softened the blow. But it's hard watching someone die. Even harder when you see them after and fall in love and..." her voice trailed off.

"Get married?" Vastra offered. Aderyn nodded. Aderyn undid the chain from around her neck, sliding one of the rings off of it. She looked at the ring as though seeing it for the first time. The sapphires inlaid in the band glinted in the moon light. Vastra couldn't help but notice that there were two rings on the chain. She was certain the other was River's, but didn't dare to mention it.

"It's funny," She whispered "I've had this on a chain around my neck for so long now but I've never really looked at it much. I've lost count of the amount of times I forgot it was there." She put the ring back onto it's chain. Rather then putting it back around her neck, she slipped it into her jacket pocket.

"How long were you married?"

"Three years I think. It's hard to keep count when you're rarely in the same time for more then a day or two. I barely saw her for the first two years. She did stay for Christmas once. That first Christmas after we were married. We stayed with Amy and Rory. But I knew she didn't want to be there. There was other things she had to do."

"But she was there." Vastra pointed out.

"Yes. She knew I needed someone. I thought the Doctor was dead and it was my first Christmas without him since I was a kid. She thought it would be easier if she was there. She tried." Aderyn resumed staring out across the garden, not looking at anything in particular, just avoiding eye contact with Vastra. She felt oddly comfortable talking to Vastra. Okay, so Madame Vastra was a lizard woman from the dawn of time, who really struggled to understand human beings. But she knew when to let someone talk, and when to do the talking. Now sat here with Vastra, she wondered whether this is what it felt like to have a mother. It was a bizarre sensation, considering a Silurian to be a mother figure. Whether she realised it or not, that was who Madame Vastra had become to Aderyn. She was there whenever Aderyn needed her and always willing to listen. Jenny too. They put up with her through her darkest times. They never judged, they never pushed her. They were just there. They taught her how to defend herself, how to live again.

"If you could see River all that time, why didn't you talk to her?"

Aderyn blinked back tears "Because I thought it would hurt too much. And I was right. I should never have said goodbye. I don't like endings."

"Everything ends, my dear. You just have to brush yourself off and start again." Vastra felt a pang of guilt. She saw a tear streak down Aderyn's face and knew that if she hadn't have forced this conversation Aderyn wouldn't be crying. She wasn't sure how to deal with crying. It wasn't something Jenny did that often. And when she did she would usually just grumble and whine before having a cup of tea. But this was different. These were tears of true sorrow. Aderyn sniffed and wiped her eyes, muttering an apology.

Vastra raised her hand dismissive "Don't apologise. You've got to cry over this at some point." Aderyn dug distractedly in her pockets, eventually finding a packet of tissues. Thankfully, Vastra had the courtesy to avert her gaze as Aderyn wiped her eyes, blew her nose then had a mouthful of tea.

"You're clever, so you know I've spoken to Jenny. I'm worried about you Aderyn. We both are."

Aderyn shook her head "You shouldn't be. I'm used to picking myself up after I fall."

"You're angry." Vastra said.

"Of course I'm angry. Yes the Doctor saved my life so many times, yes he was there for me when I was younger just because I needed someone. But he let me believe he was dead for two years. I knew what my future could be without him there and it terrified me. Two years. If I never met the Doctor then I would never have met River, or Amy and Rory. I wouldn't be feeling like this because I wouldn't know what I had lost. When I need him he's not there. The Ponds get captured by Weeping Angels and he comes here and disappears into the TARDIS and completely ignores me. River goes to that damned library and again I wind up here and he's nowhere to be seen. I finally say goodbye," She snapped. She stopped and took several deep, shuddering breaths. Vastra stayed quiet. "I finally say goodbye and here I am again. And where is he?" she stood suddenly and began pacing.

"I didn't say you were angry with him. I just said you were angry," Vastra said quietly. Aderyn made no attempt to conceal her tears. So many emotions had burst to the surface that she couldn't stop the sobs that shook her as she paced. "Addy, you don't see do you? Put yourself in his shoes. He lost your mother. So he knows what it's like to loose someone you love. He knows what it's like to loose friends. Trust me, he's lost a few over the years. He just wants to protect you."

"Yes by leaving me here." Aderyn spat.

"Not by leaving you here. But by leaving you with friends. If you had a daughter and they lost friends and a wife and then came to you for help. What would you do?"

Aderyn stopped pacing, giving her answer serious consideration. "I don't know," she said eventually "I don't know whether I'd cope with that."

"Exactly." Vastra stood up and walked over to Aderyn, who had resumed pacing and didn't realise Vastra had moved. The second Aderyn had walked into her, Vastra threw her arms around her. She felt Aderyn's chest and shoulders heave with silent sobs.

"What he did was bring you to friends he knows aren't going anywhere. He always made sure you had friends here so there was always someone you could turn to. He'll be no help to you if he can't cope with what he's going through," Vastra spoke constantly but quietly "Right now he has to come to terms with the shock that's happened in his own time stream as well as making sure yours stabilizes. Give him time and he'll be back here again." This, Vastra realised, is the best way to cope with someone crying. A hug. That's what was needed. A hug and a shoulder to cry on. When Aderyn's breathing calmed Vastra let her go. She wiped her eyes with a tissue that was already soaked with tears. She sat down again, poured herself another cup of tea and drank it in one gulp. Vastra sat as well, but this time on the edge of her seat, almost as though ready to leap forward and offer another hug.

"Feel better?"

Aderyn nodded "I guess I just got a bit too wrapped up in how I was feeling to look at it from another point of view."

"It's been an emotional few years for you and you've not really let any of those emotions out. Such actions get you nowhere. Bottling it up, I believe is what humans call it. It's terribly bad for you."

"And I like being here really. I am grateful for everything you and Jenny have done." Aderyn said. She wiped her eyes on her sleeve.

Vastra smiled "I know. I really do."

Jenny was sat on the sofa that had remained in the conservatory. Vastra and Aderyn were blissfully unaware she was there. She had heard them talk, heard Aderyn cry. But now she smiled to herself. There was only so many times that Aderyn could talk to Jenny. Jenny had tried to drag Aderyn into conversations about how she was really feeling. But she had got nowhere. Jenny knew that Aderyn's exhaustion from a lack of sleep had added to her willingness to get dragged into a conversation. Well, that and the fact that Vastra knew when not to take 'I'm fine' for an answer. She walked quietly out of the conservatory and back to her own room. She knew Aderyn would probably fall asleep on the sofa and Vastra would keep a close watch over. When she crawled into bed she fell, almost instantly, into a peaceful sleep.

When she awoke the next morning she dressed quickly and headed straight for the conservatory. But on the way there, she passed the library, where she heard a quiet laugh coming from the half open door. She collected a tray of tea from the kitchen and pushed open the library door. Aderyn was sat cross legged on a sofa, smiling and laughing as Vastra read from a book. Jenny smiled at them. She knew then that Aderyn would be back to her old self in no time.


	18. Expressive Eyebrows

Aderyn splashed cold water over her face, feeling a odd relief wash over her as the water trickled down her cheeks. Once again, Vastra and Jenny had been there for her and she had no idea how to thank them. Vastra had been right to get her to talk to her. That had been a few days ago. And what a few days it had been. She no longer cared that she hadn't seen the Doctor for some time. She didn't even mind that he wouldn't be around for a while. As she patted her face dry she caught her reflection. She had grown used to looking like the Doctor. And now there was no real resemblance she couldn't help but feel a little put out. She had decided that the curly hair had to go. The short length she kept her hair meant that the curls gave her a more manic appearance. She was slightly disappointed that she had lost the angular features and strong jaw line she once had. But she did rather like the long face and mismatched eyes she now had. And there was no doubting that she did prefer being taller. She had always been a little taller then Jenny, but now she towered over her, and was easily taller then Madame Vastra. This drastic change in height had meant that she had, once again, had to buy new clothes as most of her old trousers now stopped just above her ankle. Her small hips meant that she now had to give the illusion of any definition at her waist, but the Victorian style of dresses happily accommodated that. And her stick thin arms and legs had certainly proven beneficial for getting her out of a few tight spots.

Feeling far more relaxed then she had when she had left Trenzalore, Aderyn picked up a book and settled herself into the chair that had Vastra had bought her for her room. It was high back and comfortable, made from a soft black material. The cushions were soft and she sank into them. There had been more then one occasion when Aderyn had fallen asleep in the chair, and several times when she had woken up to find Jenny asleep in this chair after she had guided a sleepwalking Aderyn back to bed. She kicked her slippers off, tucked her feet beneath herself and opened her book. She had soon fallen into a peaceful sleep.  
_

A pair of blue eyes stared at her from beneath bushy, expressive eyebrows that were twisted into a frown. And a voice, not one she recognised, heavily laced with a Scottish accent broke the silence.

"No sir. All thirteen."

Aderyn woke with a start as a wheezing groan filled the air. She smiled to herself as she unfolded herself from the chair and rushed towards the sound of the TARDIS. He really needed to stop leaving the brakes on.


	19. Qualifies as a Compliment

The school belled trilled happily, much to the relief of the students. Clara sighed as they grabbed books and bags and made a break for the door. She knew that very few of them had been paying attention and even fewer of them would be able to complete their homework to a decent level. She turned her back on the fleeing students and tucked her notes back into her own bag. A deep breathing behind her made her turn suddenly.

"Tom?" She frowned "Have you been running?"

Tom nodded and took several deep breaths before panting out "Are you okay? You had a call in the office, your doctor."

Clara couldn't' stop herself from smiling "Did he leave an address?"

Tom held out a bit of paper. What was written on it wasn't so much an address but a vague description and rough directions.

Clara grabbed her helmet and made for the door, calling apologies over her shoulder.

The Doctor had allowed her an odd sense of freedom when he had handed her the keys to his motorbike and strict instructions to look after it. And she rode it everywhere. There was no more fitting occasion to ride it then to go and find the Doctor. His directions had been surprisingly accurate and she had quickly found the TARDIS, parked along an empty country rode. She rode full speed towards it and the doors flung open just before she crashed into them.

She skidded to a stop in the console room. The Doctor didn't spare her a glance as he turned a page in his book.

"Draft." He muttered. Clara clicked her fingers and the doors snapped shut behind her.

Aderyn looked up at her then went back to fiddling with a small device. "Take note Doctor," Aderyn said "That's what you call an entrance."

Clara tucked her helmet under her arm and turned a smirk on Aderyn "I do believe that qualifies as a compliment."

Aderyn looked up sharply, an eyebrow raised "I didn't say it was a good entrance." She said pointedly.

The Doctor closed his book hurriedly "You've been in the same room for a few seconds. Don't argue already," he stood and turned smiling to face them both "So where will we go?"

"Ancient Mesopotamia followed by future Mars?" Aderyn suggested.

"Will there be cocktails?" Clara asked.

"On the Moon." The Doctor said.

"The Moon will do."

The Doctor looked over at Aderyn, who nodded in agreement. The Doctor hadn't taken a single step towards the console before Aderyn was thrown from her position leaning against the console. The whole TARDIS lurched from side to side before starting to swing gently.

"What's going on?" Clara shouted.

"We're moving but the engines aren't on." Aderyn said, scrabbling back to the console.

The Doctor was the first to the door, Aderyn not far behind him. They leant out of the door and looked up. Above them was a helicopter, the TARDIS dangling beneath it in the clutches of a grappling hook.

Aderyn opened the hatch on the outside of the TARDIS door and picked up the phone. From the angle she was at, she could clearly see the soldiers sat within the helicopter.


	20. I Don't Like Being Picked Up

A mobile phone rang and vibrated on a desk. It was snatched up quickly, almost dropped and finally fumbled into a better grip.

"Hello? Kate Stewart's phone."

"Osgood?"

Osgood almost dropped the phone in surprise "Aderyn?"

"I'm afraid so. But I've got no time for small talk. Any chance I can chat to Kate? It's a bit of an emergency."

Osgood headed for the door but stopped abruptly "Hang on, aren't you ringing from the TARDIS?"

"Yes. But I really need to talk to Kate."

Osgood heard a strangled cry and the phone clattered against something. Then someone else picked it up.

"Hello, Osgood was it? I highly advise you put Kate Lethbridge Stewart on the phone, this second." The Doctor said.

Osgood almost dropped the phone as she broke into a quick, clumsy jog, asking everyone she saw if they knew where Kate was. Her questioning lead her to a bench outside, where Kate was eating lunch.

Osgood waved the mobile at her and she drew to a wheezy stop "It's him. Sorry, it's your personal phone, but, well, I recognised the ring tone. It was Aderyn but then someone else took the phone...It's him, isn't it?"

Kate took the phone quickly. Aderyn only every called her work mobile, unless it was an emergency. And she certainly wouldn't normally let the Doctor get away with taking the phone "Inhaler," She prompted Osgood, who's wheezing breaths were becoming louder and more laboured, she then raised the phone to her ear "Doctor, hello. We found the TARDIS in a field. I'm having it brought in."

The Doctor was leaning bodily out of the TARDIS, trying to see where they were going.

"No kidding." He shouted.

"Where are you?" Kate asked. The Doctor held out the phone and she heard the distinctive sound of whirring helicopter blades. Her face paled "Oh my God, I am so sorry. We had no idea you were still in there."

As the TARDIS swung round, following the path of the helicopter, the Doctor lost his balance and tumbled from the TARDIS door. Aderyn and Clara were quick to move. They grabbed the Doctor's legs and hooked them over the TARDIS floor. The Doctor was now hanging, upside down, from the TARDIS, the phone still in his hands, and Clara clinging to his legs. Aderyn leant out of the door, watching the progression on the helicopters towards central London.

"Would it kill you to knock?" The Doctor yelled in the direction of the phone.

"We're having you taken directly to the scene." Kate said hurriedly. She hung up the phone and immediately ran outside to wait for the helicopters to come in.

With some difficulty, and much clinging to Clara and Aderyn, the Doctor tried to pull himself back into the TARDIS. But every time he got close, the TARDIS would swing or lurch and he would be sent backwards again. So he resigned himself to be hanging from the TARDIS doors for the remainder of their journey, however long that would be. But on the bright side, he had managed to right himself and had a better grip with his hands then his legs.

Blissfully, their journey didn't last much longer. Soon, they were being lowered into Trafalgar Square. The Doctor dropped neatly onto the pavement and half heartedly saluted Kate and the UNIT soldiers that had gathered to meet them. Aderyn dropped out of the TARDIS and walked forward, hand extended towards Kate. She shook Kate's hand and winked at Osgood, who grinned.

"Doctor, as Chief Scientific Officer, may I extend the official apologies of UNIT." Kate said quickly.

"Kate Lethbridge Stewart, a word to the wise. As I'm sure your father would have told you, I don't like being picked up." The Doctor snapped.

Aderyn turned away, sniggering. Clara hid her own smiled then said seriously "That probably sounded better in his head." She strolled leisurely from the TARDIS.

Kate cleared her throat politely "I'm acting on instructions direct from the throne. Sealed orders from her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth the First." She put her hand in the inside pocket of her jacket and pulled out a very old, very battered enveloped. The paper had, no doubt, once been in pristine condition. Now the paper was creased and delicate. The Doctor took the envelope and turned it over in his hands. He lightly ran his finger over the wax seal that kept the envelope closed.

Clara's mouth fell open "The Queen? The First? Sorry, Elizabeth the First?" She glanced at Aderyn, expecting her to be as stunned as she was.

But Aderyn merely sighed "He get's around a bit."


	21. No More

"Her credentials are inside." Kate said as the Doctor continued to stare down at the envelope.

As the Doctor slid his finger under the flap of the envelope, Kate raised her hand.

"No, Doctor," She pointed over her shoulder at the National Gallery behind her "Inside." Without saying a word, the Doctor headed towards the gallery. Clara strode quickly to catch up with him.

"Who is getting the blame for this one?" Aderyn asked, looking back at the TARDIS.

"Derren Brown." Osgood said.

"Again?" Aderyn asked, looking round at her.

"We sent him flowers." Kate added before following the Doctor.

The Doctor waited outside the gallery, jiggling his leg nervously and looking up at the building.

"Did you know her, Elizabeth the First?" Clara asked.

"Unified Intelligence Task Force." The Doctor sighed.

"Sorry?" Clara frowned.

The Doctor jabbed his thumb over his shoulder at Kate, Osgood and the UNIT soldiers. "This lot. UNIT. They investigate alien stuff. Anything alien."

"What, like you?"

The Doctor smiled smugly "I work for them."

Clara raised an eyebrow at him "You have a job?"

"Why shouldn't I have a job? I'd be brilliant at having a job." The Doctor said indignantly.

"You don't have a job." Clara muttered quietly as Kate caught up with them and pulled open the door. They followed Kate and Osgood through the gallery.

"I do have a job. This is my job. I'm doing it now." The Doctor said.

"You never have a job." Clara muttered.

"I do. I do." The Doctor protested.

Kate led them into a large room that contained only one painting, hidden beneath a large cloth. She pulled the cloth from the painting and Clara stared at it open mouthed. It was a beautiful painting of a haunting scene. An alien Citadel that was on fire and clearly under attack.

"Elizabeth's credentials." Kate declared.

Aderyn strode forward until she was directly in front of the painting "But that's not possible. Doctor, I've seen this painting before, in one of those books you gave me. This can't be..." She breathed.

"No More." The Doctor said.

"That's the title." Kate said.

"I know the title." The Doctor snapped.

"Also known as Gallifrey Falls." Aderyn muttered.

"This painting doesn't belong here. In this time or place." The Doctor said.

"Obviously." Clara said.

The Doctor shook his head "It's the fall of Arcadia, Gallifrey's second city."

Clara walked towards the painting. Something about it, other then the subject matter, caught her eye "But how is it doing that? How is that possible? It's an oil painting in 3D."

"Gallifreyans are cool." Aderyn shrugged.

"Were," The Doctor corrected "Time Lord art. Bigger on the inside. A slice of real time, frozen."

"Elizabeth told us where to find it, and it's significance." Kate said.

"Are you okay?" Aderyn asked, looking round at the Doctor, who seemed reluctant to get too close to the painting.

"He was there." The Doctor said in a whisper.

"Who?" Aderyn asked.

"Me. The other me. The one I don't talk about."

"I don't understand." Clara said.

The Doctor ran his hands through his hair "I've had many faces, many lives. I don't admit to all of them. There's one life I've tried very hard to forget. He was the Doctor who fought in the Time War, and that was the day he did it. The day I did it. The day he killed them all. The last day of the Time War. The war to end all wars between my people and the Daleks. And in that battle there was a man with more blood on his hands than any other, a man who would commit a crime that would silence the universe. And that man was me."

As the Doctor stared at the painting, he remembered. He remembered that awful day.

All those years ago, back when Gallifrey had still been standing, but under attack from the Dalek fleets, Arcadia fell. The Doctor, as he had been then, stepped out of the TARDIS and approached a Gallifreyan soldier.

"I'm going to need your gun."

The stunned soldier handed it over, somewhat reluctantly. The Doctor turned to a wall and let loose a constant stream of gunfire. He shoulder the gun at looked at the words etched into the concrete. No More.

The TARDIS spun and crashed through a wall, knocking over Daleks and smashing them to pieces.

The Daleks found the words the Doctor had left behind.

"What are these words? Explain. Explain." A Dalek said.


	22. Are You Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?

Inside the Citadel an alarm blared out. The Council stared in horror as a message on a screen showed that there was a security breach in the Time Vaults, a highly secure room where all the forbidden weapons were locked away. Only one thing was taken. The Moment. Known also as the galaxy eater. The final work of the ancients of Gallifrey. A weapon so powerful, the operating system became sentient. According to legend, it developed a conscience. Never before used because, well, how do you use a weapon of mass destruction when it can stand in judgment on you? There was only one man who would even try. And that man took the Moment. He shifted a large sack from one shoulder to the other as he walked across the desert of Gallifrey.

"Time Lords of Gallifrey, Daleks of Skaro, I serve notice on you all. Too long I have stayed my hand. No more. Today you leave me no choice. Today, this war will end. No more. No more." He said to himself. He walked up to a lonely, run down barn and pulled open the door.

As soon as he was inside, the door closed behind him, he gently placed the sack on the floor and let the fabric of the bag fall to the floor. He looked down at the contents. So this was The Moment. It looked like nothing more then an ornate box. The sides were inlaid with shiny brass clockwork.

"How do you work?" He said to the box "Why is there never a big red button?" He knelt next to it and stared at it. But a scuffling noise on the other side of the door drew his attention away from it. Fearing he had been followed, he strode over to the door and pulled it open a crack. When he saw no one out there he pulled it open fully and peered out. "Hello?" But no one was there to answer him.

"It's nothing," A voice behind him said "It's just a wolf."

Whatever he had been expecting when he turned, he wasn't expecting the sight that greeted him. Sat on the box was a woman. Her hair was a mass of messy, dirty blonde waves and curls. Her clothes were torn and ragged and her skin pale. But her eyes, there was something about those eyes. They were clear and green but for the odd moments they flashed a brilliant gold.

"Don't sit on that." He shouted.

"Why not?" The woman pouted.

"Because it's not a chair, it's the most dangerous weapon in the universe." He ran to the woman and ushered her off of the box and out of the barn, slamming the door behind her. When he turned back to the box, the woman was, once again, sat on it.

"Why can't it be both? Why did you park so far away? Didn't you want her to see it?" The woman stood and walked around the box.

"Who?" He snapped.

"The TARDIS. You walked for miles, and miles and miles and miles and miles."

"I was thinking."

"I heard you." The woman said quietly.

"You heard me?"

"No more. No more." The woman said.

"Stop it."

"No more. No more." The woman said in a passable imitation.

"Who are you?" He asked sharply. The box clicked then began to tick as the clockwork began to move. "It's activating. Get out of here." He bent down and made to grab the box, but soon pulled his hand back sharply.

"What's wrong?"

"The interface is hot." He said, surprised.

The woman smiled "Well, I do my best."

"There's a power source inside," He said, then looked up at the woman, finally comprehending what she had said "You're the interface."

"They must have told you the Moment had a conscience," She smiled "Hello. Oh, look at you. Stuck between a girl and a box. Story of your life, eh Doctor?"

"You know me?" The Doctor frowned.

"I hear you. All of you, jangling around in that dusty old head of yours. I chose this face and form especially for you. It's from your past. Or possibly your future. I always get those two mixed up."

"I have no future." The Doctor said sadly.

The Moment appeared not to hear him "I think I'm called Rose Tyler. No. Yes. No, sorry, no, no, in this form, I'm called Bad Wolf. Are you afraid of the big bad wolf, Doctor?"

"Stop calling me Doctor." The Doctor shouted.

"That's the name in your head."

The Doctor shook his head, a dusting of sand falling from his hair as he did "It shouldn't be. I've been fighting this war for a long time. I've lost the right to be the Doctor."

"Then you're the one to save us all. You, the Doctor, will save us. The War Doctor."

"Yes."

The Moment chuckled "If I ever develop an ego, you've got the job."

"If you have been inside my head, then you know what I've seen. The suffering. Every moment in time and space is burning. It must end, and I intend to end it the only way I can."

The Moment crossed her arms and considered the Doctor "And you're going to use me to end it by killing them all, Daleks and Time Lords alike. I could, but there will be consequences for you."

"I have no desire to survive this." The Doctor said seriously.

"Then that will be your punishment. If you do this, if you kill them all, then that's the consequence. You live. Gallifrey. You're going to burn it, and all those Daleks with it, but all those children too. How many children on Gallifrey right now?"

The Doctor shrugged "I don't know."

"One day you will count them. One terrible night. Do you want to see what that will turn you into? Come on, aren't you curious?" A whirring portal opened above them "I'm opening windows on your future. A tangle in time through the days to come, to the man today will make of you," After a few seconds a fez dropped through and landed neatly at the Doctor's feet. The Moment raised an eyebrow "I wasn't expecting that."


	23. For Instance, a Fez

"But the Time war is over. Why is the painting here?" Clara asked, still transfixed by the painting.

"The painting only serves as Elizabeth's credentials, proof that the letter is from her." Kate said.

Clara and Aderyn both turned to the Doctor as he finally broke the seal of the envelope.

 _'My dearest love, I hope the painting known as Gallifrey Falls will serve as proof that it is your Elizabeth who writes to you now. You will recall that you pledged yourself to the safety of my kingdom. In this capacity I have appointed you as curator of the Under Gallery, where deadly danger to England is locked away. Should any disturbance occur within its walls, it is my wish that you be summoned. God speed, gentle husband.'_

The Doctor looked around at Aderyn's frowning face and nodded. Yes, the letter was definitely from Elizabeth. "What happened?" He asked Kate quietly.

"It's easier to show you." Kate sighed.

Osgood, and a man in a white coat watched as the Doctor, Aderyn and Clara followed Kate.

The man's phone began to ring as Osgood began to follow them.

She made it to them in time, just as the metal shutter began to lower behind them. Where there were heading required high levels of security.

The Doctor looked at a painting in front of him. It was a painting of Elizabeth the First in all her regalia, elegantly painted onto wood. And stood beside her, was the Doctor. But not the Doctor as he was now, how he had been all those years ago. All pointy hair and skin and bones.

"Did you know her then?" Clara asked.

"You could say that." The Doctor replied.

It was weird looking at such a picture of himself. He had travelled by himself then. Back in the days when one companion had left him and he was keeping himself busy until the next one came along.

ENGLAND 1562.

The TARDIS stood gleaming next to a bend in a river. The sun shone brightly down on the meadow and the TARDIS doors swung open as the Doctor and Elizabeth the first charged out on a white horse.

"Allons-y!" The Doctor laughed "There you go, your Majesty, what did I tell you? Bigger on the inside."

Elizabeth smiled "The door isn't. You nearly took my head off. It's normally me who does that."

The Doctor helped Elizabeth down from the horse and set about creating a comfortable spot on the grass for them to sit, throwing pillows and blankets onto the ground. They reclined leisurely on the ground and enjoyed a large picnic.

"Tell me, Doctor, why I'm wasting my time on you. I have wars to plan." Elizabeth said.

The Doctor grinned "You have picnic to eat."

"You could help me." Elizabeth said slowly.

"Well, I'm helping you eat the picnic." The Doctor pointed out.

"But you have the stomach for war. This face has seen conflict, it's clear as day." Elizabeth said.

The Doctor's face fell and he looked away from her "Oh, I've seen conflict like you wouldn't believe. But it wasn't this face." However, his reflection on his past didn't last long. He sprang suddenly to his feet and held a hand out, which Elizabeth took. He pulled her to her feet "but never mind that, your majesty. Up on your feet."

"How dare you, I'm the Queen of England." She protested.

The Doctor grinned "I'm not English." He dropped suddenly on to one knee, keeping one of her hands clasped in his own "Will you marry me?"

Elizabeth stared at him open mouthed for a few moments before answering "Oh, my dear sweet love. Of course I will."

The Doctor stood, once again grinning. "Ha! Gotcha."

Elizabeth frowned at him "My love?"

"One, the real Elizabeth would never have accepted my marriage proposal. Two, the real Elizabeth would notice when I just casually mentioned having a different face. But then the real Elizabeth isn't a shape-shifting alien from outer space. And," The Doctor pulled a gizmo out of his pocket that appeared to be made entirely of clockwork "Ding."

"What is that?"

"It's a machine that goes ding. Made it myself. Lights up in the presence of shape-shifter DNA. Oh, also it can microwave frozen dinners from up to twenty feet and download comics from the future. I never know when to stop."

The Queen's frown deepened "My love, I do not understand."

The Doctor tutted "I'm not your love. And yes you do. You're a Zygon."

"A Zygon?"

The Doctor put his hands in his pockets and rocked back and forth on his heels, smiling triumphantly "Oh, stop it. It's over. A Zygon, yes. Big red rubbery thing covered in suckers. Surprisingly good kisser. Think the real Queen of England would just decide to share her throne with any old handsome bloke in a tight suit, just cos he's got amazing hair and a nice horse?" As the Doctor turned to the horse he stopped. He had made a terrible mistake.

"It was the horse. I'm going to be King. Run!" He shouted. He grabbed Elizabeth's hand and pulled her behind him.

"What's happening?" The Queen panted, struggling to keep up with the Doctor.

"We're being attacked by a shape shifting alien from outer space, formerly disguised as my horse." They ran into the ruins of a building, hiding behind what remained of the walls. They saw it walk passed them.

"Where's it going?" Elizabeth whispered.

The Doctor stayed as close to the wall as he could while trying to look around it at the same time "I'll hold it off. You go, your people need you."

"And I need you alive for our wedding day." Elizabeth lunged towards him and kissed him. She then smiled at him and ran in the opposite direction to that the Zygon had taken.

"Good one, Doctor. Nice one. Virgin Queen? So much for history." He grumbled at himself as soon as the Queen was put of earshot.

Elizabeth ran through the woods until something stood in her path. She screamed.

The Doctor ran through the woods in the direction he believed the scream came from. He held the machine out in front of him. The warning ding was constant and rapid. Something suddenly came out of the undergrowth and he stared at it. He had it.

"Whatever you've got planned, forget it. I'm the Doctor. I'm nine hundred and four years old. I'm from the planet Gallifrey in the constellation of Kasterborous. I am the Oncoming Storm, the Bringer of Darkness, and you are basically just a rabbit, aren't you? Okay, carry on. Just a general warning." The white rabbit hopped away quickly and the Doctor sighed. Maybe he was starting to loose his touch.

There was another scream, closer this time. The Zygon was near and Elizabeth was in danger. He ran towards the sound. When he found Elizabeth, she was lying on the floor. The Doctor ran to her, helping her up.

"That thing. Explain what it is. What does it want of us?"

"That's what I'm trying to find out. Probably just your planet." The Doctor helped her brush leaves from her dress.

"Doctor! Get away from her Doctor. That's not me, That's the creature."

The Doctor spun around. There was another Elizabeth coming out of the trees towards them.

"How is that possible? She's me. Doctor, she's me!" The first Elizabeth said.

The Doctor took a step away from them and held up the machine. It dinged constantly. That was no help. It couldn't home in on one of them. He couldn't tell which one was the real Elizabeth and which one was going to kill him.

"I am indeed me. A compliment that cannot be extended to yourself." The second Elizabeth said. They now stood opposite each other. There really was no way of telling the difference between the two. They were identical.

"Extraordinary. The creature has captured my exact likeness. This is exceptional."

"Exceptional? A Queen would call it impertinent." The second Elizabeth scoffed. The Doctor prayed they didn't switch places. Then it would be impossible to tell which Elizabeth appeared first.

"A Queen would feel compelled to admire the skill of the execution, before arranging one."

"It's not working." The Doctor muttered, shaking the machine in annoyance.

The first Elizabeth raised her eyebrows "One might surmise that the creature would learn quickly to protect itself from any simple means of detection."

The second Elizabeth mimicked the facial expression "Clearly you understand the creature better than I. But then, you have the advantage."

Just when the Doctor thought the whole situation couldn't get anymore hectic and complicated, a swirling vortex appeared in the air above them.

"Get back, both of you!" He ordered "It's a time fissure. A tear in the fabric of reality. Anything could happen." A fez dropped out and landed at his feet. He raised an eyebrow "For instance, a fez."


	24. Broken From the Inside

Kate pulled the frame of the portrait and it swung open like a door. Behind it was a an archway. Kate went through first, Aderyn, the Doctor and Clara following.

"Welcome to the Under Gallery. This is where Elizabeth the First kept all art deemed too dangerous for public consumption." Kate said.

There was sand beneath their feet and a row of statues either side of them. All of the statues were covered in dust sheets. The Doctor crouched and scooped up a handful of the sand. He let it run through his fingers.

"Stone dust." He muttered.

"Is that important?" Kate asked impatiently.

The Doctor stood "In twelve hundred years I've never stepped in anything that wasn't." He then spotted Osgood stood by the arch. "Oi, you. Are you sciency?"

"Well, um, yes." Osgood replied nervously.

"Do you have a name?" He asked.

"Yes." Osgood replied quickly.

The Doctor smiled " Good. I've always wanted to meet someone called Yes. Now, I want this stone dust analysed. And I want a report in triplicate, with lots of graphs and diagrams and complicated sums on my desk, tomorrow morning, ASAP, pronto, L O L." He then turned and smiled at Clara "See? Job." Clara rolled her eyes. But the Doctor wasn't finished yet "Do I have a desk?"

"No." Kate sighed.

"And I want a desk."

Aderyn patted the Doctor gently on the shoulder " Doctor calm down. You're getting too excited. Osgood, can you please just find out what it is? Don't worry about reports, graphs and desks. Just call or text me when you've got it done. But if you could put a brief report on my desk for records, I would be grateful." Osgood nodded and Aderyn smiled at her "Thanks."

As Kate continued the walk through the Under Gallery, Clara and Aderyn followed her. The Doctor winked at Osgood and followed them.

Aderyn heard Osgood start to wheeze "Osgood?" She called over her shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"Inhaler."

"Hang on," The Doctor said, taking long strides to keep up with them "Why do you have a desk?"

Kate stopped abruptly and, arms crossed, turned to face Aderyn. "I thought you told him."

Aderyn shrugged "Never seemed to find the right moment."

Kate shook her head "She works here Doctor."

"Since when?" The Doctor demanded.

"About a year. Just part time." Aderyn said. She could feel the Doctor glaring at her as she followed Kate.

"What about Victorian London?" He whined.

"What do you think Vastra was training me for?"

The Under Gallery was longer then the Doctor had anticipated and he was already bored. That was, right up until the moment he spotted a display case containing a fez. He gently lifted the case off of the fez and put the fez on.

"Someday, you could just walk past a fez." Clara said.

Aderyn sighed "You and I know that is never going to happen."

"No harm in trying to discourage him." Clara said.

Aderyn sighed "I've tried."

Kate pulled open another door and waved her hand for Aderyn, the Doctor and Clara to go through first. When Aderyn stepped through, she felt a crunch beneath her feet. She looked down. The floor was covered in shattered glass.

"This is why you're here." Kate said.

They looked at the array of paintings in the room. They too, we all Gallifreyan paintings. But all of beautiful landscapes. Most of the broken glass were on the floor around the paintings. The Doctor crouched and picked up a large piece of the glass. He turned it over in his hands. Then looked up at the paintings.

"Interesting." The Doctor muttered.

Clara had been staring at a painting. She now looked down at the Doctor "The broken glass?"

The Doctor stood, still holding the shard of glass "No. Well yes, but no. Aderyn, have a look at this." Aderyn took the piece of glass the Doctor held out to her "What do your detective skills tell you about this?"

Aderyn looked closely at the edge of the glass, then crouched down, examining the glass on the floor. Finally, she looked up at the paintings. She spent a few seconds in quiet contemplation before handing the glass back to the Doctor. "Broken from the inside." She said.

"Exactly." The Doctor said.

"Sorry? The inside?" Clara frowned.

"The shatter pattern. The glass on all these paintings has been broken from the inside." Aderyn said.

Kate took a small pad from her pocket "As you can see, all the paintings are landscapes. No figures of any kind."

"So?" The Doctor shrugged.

Kate handed him the pad. He looked down at it "There used to be."

The pad Kate had given him showed a picture of what one of the paintings used to look like. There was indeed a figure in it, not far away, but not so close that any detail had needed to be added to the figure.

"Something's got out of the paintings?" Clara asked, taking the pad from the Doctor and looking closely at the figure.

"Lots of somethings. Dangerous." The Doctor muttered.

"This whole place has been searched. There's nothing here that shouldn't be, and nothing's got out." Kate said.

There was a whoosh of wind behind them and they turned to see a swirling white vortex.

"Oh, no. Not now." The Doctor moaned.

"Doctor, what is it?" Aderyn asked.

"Not now. I'm busy." The Doctor shouted at the vortex.

"Is it something to do with the paintings?" Clara asked.

The Doctor shook his head and tapped his foot irritably "No, no. This is different. I remember this. Almost remember. Oh, of course. This is where I come in." The Doctor suddenly snatched the fez from his head and launched in into the vortex.

"What is that?" Aderyn demanded.

"It's a time fissure." He said. But offered no other explanation.

Clara nudged Aderyn painfully in the ribs "If he goes in there, will you follow him?"

"Of course." Aderyn said. She secretly hoped he would. If he went in there, then she would follow and curiosity was starting to set in.

"Geronimo." The Doctor shouted, and dived into the fissure head first.

"Clara, stay here. Kate, keep her safe." Aderyn shouted and ran into the time fissure after him.


	25. That is Proper Skinny

**It could get a bit confusing from here on in as far as Doctors go.**

 **10th Doctor: Obviously David Tennant Doctor.**

 **11th Doctor/the Doctor: Matt Smith Doctor.**

 **War Doctor: John Hurt Doctor.**

 **I'll try my best to make sure it isn't too confusing as far as which Doctor is which.**

* * *

The Doctor landed neatly on the other side of the fissure. He stooped and picked up the fez.

"Who is this man?"

The Doctor looked up into the face of his younger self. Next to him stood two Elizabeths. And it was one of them that had spoken.

"That's just what I was wondering." The younger Doctor said.

The Doctor smiled at his former self. Was this really what he had looked like. Aderyn had once delighted in pointing out how skeletal he had been. But to see it now.

"Oh, that is skinny. That is proper skinny. I've never seen it from the outside. It's like a special effect. Oi!" The fez was knocked from the Doctor's head as Aderyn landed next to him and swiped it from his head. She had been wanting to do that since he'd put the stupid thing on. She had hoped they had finally lost it when the Doctor had thrown it through the fissure. The fissure closed behind her. When the Doctor realised it was Aderyn next to him, he pointed at the Doctor and smiled "Ha! Matchstick man."

Aderyn rolled her eyes.

The Doctor looked at this unfamiliar man in front of him. Ideas and theories raced through his mind until he landed on one he wished, above anything, to disprove.

"You're not." He said. He then took his sonic screwdriver out of his pocket.

The other Doctor did the same. They each held up their screwdrivers, the 11th Doctor opening his out to it's fullest extent. It was certainly longer then that owned by his younger self.

Aderyn sighed and took her own screwdriver from her pocket. She activated it and the Doctor's screwdrivers sparked. They both dropped them. The 10th Doctor turned and frowned at Aderyn. She merely smiled back at him.

"Compensating?" The 10th Doctor pointed at the Doctor's sonic screwdriver as he picked it up.

"For what?" The Doctor frowned.

"Regeneration. It's a lottery."

The Doctor grinned again and looked at Aderyn "He's cool. Isn't he cool? I'm the Doctor and I'm all cool. Oops, I'm wearing sandshoes." Aderyn raised an eyebrow at him and the Doctor stopped grinning.

The 10th Doctor sighed " What are you doing here? I'm busy."

The Doctor grinned again "Oh, busy. I see. Is that what we're calling it, eh?" He picked up the fez again and looked from one Elizabeth to the other. "Hello ladies."

"Don't start." The 10th Doctor groaned.

The Doctor held up his hands "Hey, what you get up to in the privacy of your own regeneration is your business."

"One of them is a Zygon."

The Doctor grimaced "I'm not judging you."

The time fissure reappeared suddenly behind them. Keen for a closer look, both Doctors took a pair of glasses from their inside jacket pocket and put them on. They then noticed the other had done the same thing. "Oh, lovely." They both said.

They both looked at the fissure. The Doctor turned his head without taking his eyes from the fissure "Your Majesties. Probably a good time to run."

"But what about the creature." The Elizabeths said.

The 10th Doctor spun on his heel and the 11th Doctor looked over his shoulder.

"Elizabeth, whichever one of you is the real one, turn and run in the opposite direction to the other one." The 10th Doctor said.

One of the Elizabeths stepped forward "Stay alive, my love. I am not done with you yet." She kissed the 10th Doctor and turned, running away from them.

"Thanks. Lovely." The Doctor mumbled.

"I understand. Live for me, my darling. We shall be together again." Yet another kiss and another direction taken.

"Well won't that be nice." He mumbled.

The 11th Doctor raised an eyebrow "One of those is a Zygon."

The 10th Doctor sighed "Yeah."

"Big red, rubbery thing covered in suckers."

Again the 10th Doctor sighed "Yeah."

"Venom sacs under the tongue."

The 11th Doctor tutted "Yeah, I'm getting the point, thanks."

Aderyn laughed "Nice."


	26. They're Not Sandshoes

"Doctor? Is that you?"

The two Doctors and Aderyn turned back the time fissure, frowning at it.

"Clara?" Aderyn ventured.

"Yeah, it's me. We can hear you. Where are you?" Clara asked.

"Yeah, where are we?" Aderyn asked.

"England, 1562." The 10th Doctor said.

"Who are you talking to?" Clara asked.

"The Doctors." Aderyn said.

"Doctors? There's more than one of them?" Kate said.

"It's hard to explain and I'm not going to. I don't really know what's going on myself." The Doctor said.

"Can you come back through?" Kate asked.

Struck by a sudden idea, Aderyn took the fez from the Doctor's head. "Physical passage may not be possible in both directions. Fez incoming." She threw the red hat into the fissure. "Anything?"

"Nothing here." Clara said.

"Where did it go then?" the 10th Doctor asked.

Back in the Under Gallery, Kate took her phone from her pocket. "Keep them talking." She said, and left the room.

"Malcolm, I need you to send me one of my father's incident files. Codenamed Cromer. 70s or 80s depending on the dating protocol." She spoke quickly into the phone as she left the room. As she walked down the corridor, she didn't notice something growl as it watched her pass.  
_

"Okay, you used to be me, you've done all this before. What happens next?" The 10th Doctor said.

The Doctor scratched the back of his head "I don't remember."

The 10th Doctor's mouth dropped open "How can you forget this?"

"Hey, it's not my fault. You're obviously not paying enough attention. Reverse the polarity!" The Doctor snapped.

They both aimed their sonic screwdrivers at the fissure.

Aderyn sighed and shook her head.

"It's not working." The Doctor said.

"We're both reversing the polarity." the 10th Doctor said.

"Yes I know that."

"One of you is reversing the polarity. The other is reversing it back. You're confusing the polarity." Aderyn said.

Both Doctor's lowered their screwdrivers and frowned at the other. The Doctor held up his screwdriver and the 10th Doctor kept his by his side. But before the Doctor could turn his screwdriver on the fissure, someone else dropped through.

The man was older. His face was lined and his short hair was silver and white. Though he didn't know who either Doctor or Aderyn were. They knew exactly who he was.

The War Doctor held up a red hat. "Anyone loose a fez?"

Aderyn groaned "I thought I'd finally got rid of that."

The Doctors were in shock. They were always prepared for the unexpected, but this they hadn't been prepared for.

"You. How can you be here? More to the point, why are you here?" The 10th Doctor stammered.

The War Doctor held his hands behind his back and smiled "Good afternoon. I'm looking for the Doctor."

Aderyn smiled at the bemused expression on the Doctor's faces "Well, you've certainly come to the right place."

The War Doctor smiled at Aderyn before turning back to the Doctors "Good. Right. Well, who are you boys? Oh, of course. Are you his companions?"

Aderyn laughed. "His companions?" The Doctor said indignantly.

"They get younger all the time. Well, if you could point me in the general direction of the Doctor?" The War Doctor looked around at Aderyn who could barely breathe for laughing. He frowned at her as she waved her hand in the direction of the two Doctors.

Both Doctors raised their sonic screwdrivers. The War Doctor stared at them, his mouth open.

"You're me?"

"Yeah." Said the 10th Doctor.

"Really." Said the Doctor.

"Both of you?"

"Yep." The 10th Doctor said.

"Even him?" The War Doctor pointed at the 11th Doctor.

"Yes!" The Doctor exclaimed. Aderyn laughed harder.

"You're my future self?"

"Yes." Both Doctors said.

The War Doctor appealed to Aderyn for some kind of help "Am I having a midlife crisis?"

Aderyn finally stopped laughing "Most likely."

The War Doctor then spotted the sonic screwdriver she still had in her hand and frowned.

Aderyn tucked the screwdriver back into her pocket "Don't worry. I'm not you. I'm just the companion."

The War Doctor turned back to the two Doctors, who were still holding their sonic screwdrivers out in front of them "Why are you pointing your screwdrivers like that? They're scientific instruments, not water pistols. Look like you've seen a ghost."

The 10th Doctor broke into a sudden grin "Still, loving the posh gravelly thing. It's very convincing."

The Doctor frowned at him "Brave words, Dick Van Dyke."

Lead by a Nobleman, a group of soldiers emerged from the trees.

"Encircle them," The Nobleman shouted. He then looked at the Doctors and Aderyn "Which of you is the Doctor? The Queen of England is bewitched. I would have the -Doctor's head."

The War Doctor sighed "Well, this has all the makings of your lucky day."  
_

"I think there's another one now." Clara said, as soon as Kate walked back into the room.

"There's a precedent for that." Kate said with a raised eyebrow.  
_

As the Doctor's raised their screwdrivers again, the War Doctor sighed "Oh, the pointing again. They're screwdrivers! What are you going to do, assemble a cabinet at them?"

"What is that? That thing, is it witchcraft?" The Nobleman said, pointing passed the Doctors at the swirling fissure.

"Ah, yes. Now that you mention it, that is witchcraft. Yes, yes, yes. Witchy witchcraft." The Doctor leapt upon an idea. He leant close to the fissure and shouted "Hello? Hello in there. Excuse me. Hello! Am I talking to the wicked witch of the well?"  
_

Kate nudged Clara "He means you.

"Why am I the witch?" Clara grumbled.

"Clara?" The Doctor called.

"Hello?" Clara gave in.  
_

The Doctor turned back to the soldiers long enough to smile at them "Clara, hi, hello. Hello. Would you mind telling these prattling mortals to get themselves begone?"

"What he said." Clara said uncertainly.

"Yes, tiny bit more colour." The Doctor said.

"Right. Prattling mortals, off you pop, or I'll turn you all into frogs."

"Ooo, frogs. Nice. You heard her." The Doctor waved his hands, shooing the soldiers. But they didn't move.

"You can't turn someone into a frog. Frogs are too small. Toad maybe but not a frog." Aderyn said.

Clara tutted "Doctor. what's going on?"

"It's a timey-wimey thing." The Doctor said quickly.

"Timey what? Timey-wimey?" The War Doctor said.

The 10th Doctor shrugged "I don't know where he picks that stuff up."

Each soldier dropped to their knees as another person walked through the trees towards them.

"You don't seem to be kneeling. How tremendously brave of you." Elizabeth said.

"Which one are you? What happened to the other?" The 10th Doctor asked quickly.

"Indisposed. Long live the Queen." Elizabeth replied smugly.

"Long live the Queen." the soldiers echoed.

Elizabeth considered the three Doctors and Aderyn for a moment "Arrest them," She said suddenly "Maybe the tower for them."

"The Tower, a brilliant idea," Aderyn said cheerfully. "My companions here are a little unpredictable. Who knows when they're next going to make a fool of themselves."

The 11th Doctor, suddenly away of what tower they would be locked in, waved his hands enthusiastically "Did you say the Tower? Ah, yes, brilliant. Love the Tower. Breakfast at eight, please. Will there be Wi-Fi?"

The War Doctor shook his head in disbelieve "Are you capable of speaking without flapping your hands about?"

"Yes." The Doctor said.

"No." Aderyn corrected.

The Doctor tutted at her before turning back to the Queen " I demand to be incarcerated in the Tower immediately with my co-conspirators Sandshoes, Granddad and her."

"Grandad?" The War Doctor exclaimed.

"They're not sandshoes." The 10th Doctor whined.

"Yes they are." The War Doctor muttered.

Aderyn pulled the Doctor away from the Queen and smiled apologetically at her "See what I mean?"

"Silence," Elizabeth snapped "The tower is not to be taken lightly. Very few emerge again."

Aderyn smiled slyly "I'm sure we'll enjoy finding that out for ourselves."  
_

"Oh she is clever." Kate muttered before charging for the door "Come on."

"Where are we going?" Clara asked, running behind Kate.

"My office. Otherwise known as the Tower of London."


	27. Yes, You Have a Chin

Aderyn and the three Doctors were shoved roughly into a cell and the door slammed behind them.

"Three of us in one cell? That's going to cause some nasty anomalies if we don't get out soon." The 10th Doctor muttered. While the Doctors slouched off to various corners, Aderyn scanned the floor. She had an idea. There were only two people that would be able to get them out of this mess, and that was Clara and Kate. Kate would have heard them mention the Tower of London. That's where they were now. Aderyn would be able to get a message to them, but to do that she couldn't use her bare hands. She spotted a rusted nail on the floor and scooped it up. She remembered the layout of Kate's office well enough to be able to pick the best spot to leave her message. She looked around at the Doctors, who were either glaring at each other or muttering to themselves about how they could possibly get themselves out of this. They weren't going to be much help yet. There was one huge thing they had all missed. And she wasn't about to tell them. Three of them in one room, they'd figure it out eventually. At least she hoped they would. It would be awfully embarrassing for them if she had to point it out to them. For now, she would do her best to lend a hand to those back in present day London in getting them out of here. She scrapped the nail along the brickwork of the wall a few times, getting the rusted metal into a finer point before really setting to work.

The 11th Doctor looked over at Aderyn. She had started scratching at the wall with something. He had no idea what she was up to, and had surprisingly little desire to find out. Nothing would happen to them in here so he could safely leave her to whatever she wanted to do. He looked over at the War Doctor. After going into his own time stream on Trenzalore, he had tried to forget about this Doctor. He didn't even like to think of this man as part of himself, not after what he did on the day the Time War ended.

The War Doctor held out his own sonic screwdriver, focusing it's beam on the door.

"The sonic won't work on that, it's too primitive." The 10th Doctor said.

"Shall we ask for a better quality of door so we can escape?" The 11th Doctor snapped.

The 10th Doctor ignored him "Okay, so the Queen of England is now a Zygon. But never mind that. Why are we all together? Why are we all here? Well, me and Chinny, we were surprised, but you came looking for us. You knew it was going to happen. Who told you?"

The War Doctor lowered the screwdriver and turned to look at the two Doctors. They were both looking expectantly at him. Behind them he saw the Moment, sat on a stone bench smiling at him. She held a figure to her lips.

The War Doctor didn't know how to answer. He couldn't tell them why he was there. So he just shrugged.

The 10th Doctor was really starting to loose his temper. The irritating scraping noise was proving to be more then just a little distracting. With an angry sigh he rounded on Aderyn.

"Who the hell are you and what are you doing here?" He snapped, storming angrily towards her.

She lowered the hand that had been carving into the stone and turned slowly to face him "I'm an anomaly. And I just followed." She muttered. It was then that he met her gaze. There was something about her that had been niggling at him since she had tumbled through the time fissure, something that had been trying desperately to get his attention. And it was in her mismatched eyes that he saw it. A familiarity that he was only just seeing. Her eyes seemed to be calling out to him. One steely blue, the other deep green. Both had such sadness but somewhere in those eyes was the faintest glimmer of hope. He only knew of one person who ever looked at him that way. But this tall, slim brunette couldn't possibly be her. Could she?

The 11th Doctor, distractible as ever, frowned at the 10th Doctor "Oi, chinny?"

"Yes, you have a chin." The 10th Doctor sighed.

Aderyn smiled "Told you."  
_

Osgood looked at the results from the stone dust analysis as she waited for another copy to print out that she could give to Aderyn " Marble, granite. A lot of different stone, but none of it from the fabric of the building. It's like somebody smashed up a lot of old statues. Are there any missing?"

She frowned up at Mcgillop who was helping her. He shrugged "Don't think so. Why would anyone do that, anyway? I mean, I know we're meant to keep an open mind, but are we supposed to believe in creatures that can hide in oil paintings and have some sort of a grudge against statues?" Osgood went very suddenly very pale and began to wheeze. He rushed to her "You all right?"

Osgood took her inhaler from her pocket and took a deep breath of the calming vapour.

She shook her head "We have to go, right now, this minute."

"What's wrong?"

Osgood looked around at the statues covered in dust sheets that lined the walls "The things from the paintings. I know why they smashed the statues."

"Why?"

Mcgillop soon regretted asking questions and wished they had just run.

"Because they needed somewhere to hide." Osgood said.

Around them, the things beneath the dust sheets began to pull the white cloths over their heads. They were surrounded by Zygons. Osgood ran. She didn't see what happened to Mcgillop but she knew he hadn't be able to get away.

She ran back to the National Gallery, closing the door behind her. But the Zygon easily smashed through the painting of the Queen. She ran into an empty lift and repeatedly slammed her hand against the buttons. But it wouldn't move. She slumped onto the floor, bringing her knees up to her chest.

"Aderyn and the Doctor will save me." She muttered.

She heard heavy footsteps coming towards her and held her breath. The footsteps changed from heavy to lighter and she saw the shadow on the back wall of the lift.

"Excuse me. I'm going to need my inhaler. I so hate it when I get one with a defect. Ooo, you've got some perfectly horrible memories in here, haven't you? So jealous of your pretty sister. I don't blame you. I wish I'd copied her."

Osgood drew her eyes away from the feet that had appeared at the lift doors and up into the face of another Osgood.

But the Zygon hadn't realised where it was standing. Osgood smiled "So do I." She grabbed the long scarf she had been wearing and gave it a tremendous yank. The Zygon had been stood on the end of the scarf and was sent spiraling backwards. Osgood seized the opportunity and ran passed the floored Zygon.

The Zygon stood up and brushed off it's white lab coat "Oh for goodness sake." It muttered.


	28. You Don't Have The Clearance

AS Clara followed Kate down a corridor, Kate spoke hurriedly into her phone "One of them will be trying to send us a message. We're looking for a string of numerals from around 1550, approximately. Priority One. I'm going to need access to the Black Archive." She ended the phone call abruptly and ignored Clara's demands to know where they were going. Right up until they got there.

"The Black Archive," Kate explained "Highest security rating on the planet. The entire staff have their memories wiped at the end of every shift. Automated memory filters in the ceiling," When they approached a young man stood at the door, she smiled politely "Access please."

The young man saluted "Ma'am."

She handed him a key "Atkins, isn't it?"

"Yes, ma'am." The man smiled "First day here."

Kate smiled at him but spoke to Clara from the corner of her mouth "Been here ten years."

When the door behind them had been closed, Kate's demeanour was far less boss like and far more friendly. She strolled leisurely through the room, casually leading Clara.

"Lock and key? Bit basic, isn't it?" Clara asked curiously.

Kate shrugged "Can't afford electronic security down here. Got to keep the Doctor out. The whole of the Tower is TARDIS-proofed. He really wouldn't approve of the collection."

"But you let me in."

Kate smiled at her "You have a top level security rating from your last visit."

Clara was stunned. She had no memory of ever being here at all. None of this was familiar to her at all "Sorry, my what?"

"Apologies. We have to screen all his known associates. We can't have information about the Doctor and the TARDIS falling into the wrong hands. The consequences could be disastrous." Kate stopped walking and looked into a small chamber. There was a sealed door on one side and one wall was mostly glass.

"What is that?" Clara asked. She stood close to the dark, peering in at the strange object within. It looked like an old, scuffed leather wristband. The material was wide and a small keypad covered the front.

"Time travel. A vortex manipulator bequeathed to the UNIT archive by a dubious associate on the event of her death. Well, one of her deaths. No one can know we have this, not even our allies." Kate said.

"Why not?"

"Think about it. Americans with the ability to rewrite history? You've seen their movies."

Clara suddenly had some hope that there was something she would be able to do from this time "Okay, so this is how we're going to rescue the Doctor."

Kate shook her head "I'm not sure there's enough power for a two-way trip. In any event, we don't have the activation code. The Doctor knows we have this, so he has made sure Aderyn never told us the code."

Clara looked round at Kate. The Doctor had mentioned something to her a while a go about a vortex manipulator that Aderyn had. It had only been a comment made in passing and she had completely forgotten about it "Is that Aderyn's vortex manipulator?"

"You don't have the clearance for me to answer that question." Kate said sternly. She pulled open the door to the chamber and Clara followed her in. Up close, the vortex manipulator looked far more intricately designed then it had from the other side of the glass. It also looked wider and more like a cuff than a wristband.

When Kate was once again distracted by her phone, Clara stepped closer to it. She heard Kate say "Yes? Well, if you've found it, photograph it and send it to my phone." Before her attention was drawn away from the manipulator towards the two people that had entered the Black Archive. It was Osgood and Mcgillop.

When she knew Kate had put the phone down, she cleared her throat "Kate? Should they be here? Why have they followed us?"

Kate cast a glance over her shoulder "Oh, they've probably just finished disposing of the humans a bit early."

Knowing she didn't really want to know the answer, Clara asked "Uh, the humans?" She slowly turned to Kate, who was smiling.

"Dear me. I really do get into character, don't I?" As Kate stepped towards her, she changed and Clara got a first hand glimpse at what a Zygon looked like. Tall, red and covered in suckers. The top of the head ended in a point and the lipless mouth quivered and snarled.

Behind the glass, Osgood smiled "The Under Gallery is secured."

As the Zygon turned it's attention away from Clara, Clara saw Kate's phone light up. It was the work of seconds to look at the photo of the code scratched into stone, grab the vortex manipulator and pull it onto her wrist.

"Prepare to dispose of one more human. We have acquired the device." The Zygon said.

Clara chuckled "Wrong. Activation code, right?" She quickly tapped the code into the keypad and smiled when she saw a button labelled "activate." She pressed the button and vanished.


	29. Take This Sinking Boat and Point it Home

**Ok so this is the chapter I throw in two things 1) an apology, 2) a disclaimer.**

 **1: I apologise for the amount of speech there is in this chapter, and possibly the next. It's hard to get any action in when there are important bits of conversation to get in. And I apologise for how much longer this story will be compared to the others.**

 **2: The song Aderyn starts singing in this chapter is "Falling Slowly" I do not own that song. Though if you haven't heard it I advise listening to the Arthur Darvill version. His voice is beautiful and fits the mood of the song so well.**

* * *

The War Doctor looked at the door again " In theory, I can trigger an isolated sonic shift among the molecules, and the door should disintegrate."

The 10th Doctor scratched the back of his head "We'd have to calculate the exact harmonic resonance of the entire structure down to a sub-atomic level. Even the sonic would take years. "

The War Doctor sighed "No, no, the sonic would take centuries. Oh, we might as well get started. Help to pass the timey-wimey. Do you have to talk like children? What is it that makes you so ashamed of being a grown up?"

Aderyn stopped scratching at the wall, looking down at the nail in her hands "What's the point of growing up if you can't be childish sometimes."

The Doctors stared at her. She looked guiltily at them "Someone told me that once."

Not sure what to say, the War Doctor turned away from her, focusing his attention on the other two Doctors. "Oh, the way you both look at me. What is that? I'm trying to think of a better word than dread."

"It must be really recent for you." The 10th Doctor said sadly.

"Recent?"

"The Time War. They day you killed them all." The 11th Doctor said quietly.

"The day _we_ killed them all." The 10th Doctor corrected.

"Same thing." The 11th Doctor huffed.

The Moment leant close to the War Doctor's ear "It's history for them. All decided. They think their future is real. They don't know it's still up to you. "

"I don't want to talk about it." The War Doctor said suddenly.

The 10th Doctor frowned "We're not talking about it. There's no one else here."

But Aderyn knew there was someone else there. The 11th Doctor looked around at her when he realised she had stopped scraping at the stone. He saw that something had clearly caught her attention. Something next to the War Doctor But when he looked he saw nothing there.

The Moment had realised she was being looked at. But dismissed it as nothing. No one else could see her after all.

"Go on, ask them. Ask them what you need to know." The Moment whispered.

"Did you ever count?" The War Doctor asked.

"Count what?" The 11th Doctor snapped.

"How many children there were on Gallifrey that day."

The 11th Doctor shrugged "I have absolutely no idea."

"How old are you now?" The War Doctor asked.

Again, the 11th Doctor shrugged "I don't know. I loose track."

"Twelve hundred and something." Aderyn said.

"Four hundred years older than me, and in all that time you've never even wondered how many there were? You never once counted?"

"Two point four seven billion." the 10th Doctor said in a voice that ws almost a whisper.

"You did count." the War Doctor said.

But the 10th Doctor wasn't paying attention to him "You forgot? Four hundred years, is that all it takes?"

The Moment got herself comfortable on the stone bench and smiled as she observed the three Doctors squabbling amongst themselves. It was hard not to find it funny when the realisation set in that she was watching a man have a heated argument with himself. Then something drew her attention away from them. She was being watched. She turned and, sure enough, the girl was watching her. The Moment knew more about the Doctor's life, past, present and future, then was safe for anyone to know. And this girl, Addy or little bird...or some weird name along those lines, would play a very important part in the Doctor's life. And not just the life of the floppy haired, chin boy who was gesticulating wildly while shouting through gritted teeth. This girl, whatever her name was, was hugely important. But she shouldn't be able to see her.

The Moment was unflappable and resolute, and also a little ashamed to admit, even to herself, that the idea that someone else could see her threw her a little.

She leant forward, resting her arm on her knee. "Can you see me?" She asked quietly. Almost imperceptibly, the girl nodded. The girl looked briefly at the arguing Doctor's. When she looked back, the Moment was gone.

Aderyn was suddenly aware of a presence behind her. But she didn't look around. She knew who would be stood behind her.

"Prove it," A voice close to her ear said "If you can see and hear me then prove it. Sing a song." Aderyn smiled a half smile then quietly began to hum.

The 11th Doctor snarled quietly and dropped his hands in frustration. There had been a break in the talking and in the quiet he heard Aderyn start singing. "Take this sinking boat and point it home. We've still got time."

He had been put through that damned song more times then he cared to count (453 times actually...he had counted). There was no denying it was a good song. It had a slow and beautiful tune with hauntingly sad lyrics. But he really didn't think now was the time to be reminded of that song. He shot Aderyn an aggrivated glare "Thanks, Now I'm going to have that song stuck in my head." Aderyn just smiled.

He returned to the argument just as the 10th Doctor was accusing him of not caring and shouted "I moved on."

"Where?" the 10th Doctor demanded "Where can you be now that you can forget something like that?"

"Spoilers." the 11th Doctor said and turned away.

But the 10th Doctor refused to drop the matter. He grabbed the 11th Doctor's arm and spun him round to face him "No. No, no, no. For once I would like to know where I'm going."

They all heard the clatter as Aderyn dropped the nail she had been using "No. No you really don't."

"And who are you to know that?" The 10th Doctor shouted.

"Leave her alone." The 11th Doctor said, roughy shoving the 10th Doctor's shoulder.

"No. I want to know."

Aderyn put her hands in her pockets "Who was the last one? The last companion you said goodbye to?"

The 10th Doctor swallowed "Donna Noble."

Aderyn sighed sadly "Then no. You really don't want to know what you're heading for because being him isn't any better then being you. Give it time and you will wish you stayed by yourself. You will hate your need to have company. You'll wish you had enough sense to stop looking for someone to replace the last one."

"How do you know I ever thought or felt that?" The 11th Doctor asked.

"I can read you like a book, Doctor. You seem to keep forgetting that."


	30. It's His Grunge Phase

The War Doctor chuckled sadly "I don't know who you are, either of you. I haven't got the faintest idea. "

"They're you. They're what you become if you destroy Gallifrey. The man who regrets and the man who forgets. The moment is coming. The Moment is me. You have to decide." The Moment said.

The War Doctor shook his head "No." he said firmly.

"No?" The 10th Doctor frowned.

"Just no." The War Doctor said.

Aderyn burst out laughing so suddenly that everyone jumped.

"Is something funny? Did I miss a funny thing?" the 11th Doctor said.

Aderyn quelled her laughed "Do you not realise, Doctor?"

The Doctor was far from in the mood to put up with Aderyn's cryptic ways of pointing out something. He was sure there was something he had missed. There normally was. But whatever he had missed, he was sure something funny would have been far too obvious to him.

"Realise what?" He asked.

"The reason I always ask that you never travel alone."

The Doctor looked from the 10th Doctor to the War Doctor "Is this who I am when I'm alone?"

Aderyn put a kind hand on his arm "It only gets worse with age."

The War Doctor looked down at the screwdriver he still held in his hands. More to avoid looking at the other Doctors then anything else. He did not want to believe that he became these two men. They both looked so young compared to him. Except for their eyes. Those were eyes that had seen hard times and dark days. One regrets and one forgets. Was he really destined to be these two? Would there really be no way of stopping it? And from what Aderyn had said, there were dark times ahead that weren't connected to the Time War. He would travel and he would loose people. He would wish to be alone while needing someone there. If he used the Moment then dark days would follow him for four hundred years. And who knew what was beyond that?

"It's the same screwdriver," A voice whispered in his ear. The Moment was back to talk to him. He didn't really want to hear anything she had to say. He just wanted to go home and do what he had to do "Same software, different case."

He suddenly realised what she was saying to him and looked up at the other two Doctors. "Four hundred years." He said.

"I'm sorry?" The 10th Doctor said.

The War Doctor held up his sonic screwdriver "At a software level, they're all the same device, aren't they. Same software, different case."

"So?" The 11th Doctor said.

The War Doctor rolled his eyes. How could they be so slow "So, it would take centuries for the screwdriver to calculate how to disintegrate the door. Scanning the door, implanting the calculation as a permanent subroutine in the software architecture and, if you really are me, with your sandshoes and your dickie bow, and that screwdriver is still mine, that calculation is still going on."

The 10th Doctor held his screwdriver up to his ear "still going on."

The 11th Doctor did the same "Calculation complete. Hey, four hundred years in four seconds. We may have had our differences, which is frankly odd in the circumstances, but, I tell you what, boys. We are incredibly clever."

Aderyn had been doing her own calculations and now she listened, waiting. After a few moments she cleared her throat "3...2...1"

The door burst open and Clara stumbled in.

"How did you do that?" The 11th Doctor asked quickly.

"The door wasn't locked." Clara said.

"Right." The Doctor said.

"So they're both you then?" Clara asked, pointing at the other two Doctors.

"Yes. You've met them before. Don't you remember?" Despite the fact that, technically, Aderyn had been the one to step into his time stream, the Doctor knew that Clara had memories of it. He would be surprised if she didn't remember the two other Doctors.

"A bit," Clara said. She looked at the 10th Doctor "Nice suit."

The 10th Doctor straightened his tie. "Thanks."

"Hang on. Four of you in one cell, and none of you thought to try the door?" Clara said.

"It should have been locked." The War Doctor said.

"I knew it was unlocked." Aderyn confessed.

"And you didn't say anything?" Clara said, resisting the urge to laugh.

"You should know by now that the Doctor always misses something. Anyway, three Doctors in one room. I wanted to see if it meant they were any smarter. It took them ages to work out the trick with the screwdriver."

"But why wasn't it locked?" the 11th Doctor asked.

"Because," A figure in the corridor moved into the cell. It was Elizabeth "I was fascinated to see what you would do upon escaping. I understand you're rather fond of this world. It's time I think you saw what's going to happen to it."  
_

Osgood walked carefully through the Under Gallery. She had no idea what she was going to do but she had to, at least, try and find out what the Zygons were up to. She tip toed through the room where the Zygons had masqueraded as statues. She thought all of the Zygons had gone. But there was still a figure draped in a dust sheet. When it groaned, she stopped. But when she recognised the shoe that was sticking out from beneath the cloth, she ran forward and pulled it away to reveal Kate. Kate was covered in a weird red sheet like substance. She pulled it away from her, helping Kate down from the plinth.

"Kate? Oh goodness, you're not actually dead. Oh, that's tremendous news. Those creatures, they turn themselves into copies. And they need to keep the original alive, refresh the image so to speak."

Kate straightened herself up and steadied herself "Where did they go?"

"The Tower." Osgood said.

Kate looked at her with horror "If those creatures have got access to the Black Archive, we may just have lost control of the planet."  
_

Elizabeth lead them through the Tower. They reached the depths of the tower, which was alive with the bustle of Zygons.

"This is the control centre. The Zygons lost their own world. It burnt in the first days of the Time War. A new home is required." Elizabeth said.

"So they want this one." Aderyn said.

"Not yet." Elizabeth explained "It's far too primitive. Zygons are used to a certain level of comfort."

A Zygon approached them "Commander, why are these creatures here?"

"Because I say they should be. It is time you too were translated." Elizabeth said. She then looked over her shoulder at the Doctors, Clara and Aderyn. "Observe this. I believe you will find it fascinating."

The Zygon placed his hand over a glass cube that had indented corners. It vanished. Propped up against a wall, they noticed one of the landscape paintings that had been in the Under Gallery. But it wasn't just a landscape. There was a figure in the painting. Not close enough to require any detail.

"That's him! That's the Zygon in the picture now." Clara exclaimed.

"It's not a picture, it's a stasis cube. Time Lord art. Frozen instants in time, bigger on the inside, but could be deployed as" The War Doctor started.

"Suspended animation," The 10th Doctor finished "Oh, that's very good. The Zygons all pop inside the pictures, wait a few centuries till the planet's a bit more interesting, and then out they come."

Clara frowned.

"You see, Clara," Aderyn explained kindly "they're stored in the paintings in the Under Gallery, like cup-a-soups. Except you add time, if you can picture that. Nobody could picture that. Forget I said cup-a-soups."

"And now the world is worth conquering. So the Zygons are invading the future from the past." Clara said.

"Exactly." the 11th Doctor confirmed.

The 10th Doctor smiled "And do you know why I know that you're a fake? Because you're such a bad copy. It's not just the smell, or the unconvincing hair, or the atrocious teeth, or the eyes just a bit too close together, or the breath that could stun a horse. It's because my Elizabeth, the real Elizabeth, would never be stupid enough to reveal her own plan. Honestly, why would you do that?"

Aderyn sighed and clamped her hand over the 10th Doctor's mouth before he could make more a fool of himself. She then smiled apologetically at Elizabeth, fully aware that was not the first time she had felt the need to do that because of one of the Doctors. "Hush now." she said to the 10th Doctor.

Elizabeth smiled broadly "Because it's not my plan. And I am the real Elizabeth."

The 10th Doctor pulled Aderyn's hand away from his mouth "So, backtracking a moment to lend context to my earlier remarks."

"My twin is dead in the forest. I am accustomed to taking precautions." Elizabeth pulled a dagger from her garter "These Zygon creatures never even considered that it was me who survived rather than their own commander. The arrogance that typifies their kind."

"You actually killed one of them?" Aderyn asked.

"I may have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but at the time, so did the Zygon. The future of my kingdom is imperilled. Doctor, can I rely on your service?" Elizabeth said seriously.

The 10th Doctor scratched the back of his head and clicked his tongue "Well, I'm going to need my TARDIS."

"It has been procured," Elizabeth smiled "But first, my love, you have a promise to keep."

The wedding was a brief one but enough to be official. The 10th Doctor seemed enthusiastic enough, but even Aderyn felt the need to turn away when Elizabeth pounced on the Doctor when the Clergyman announced that the 10th Doctor could now kiss the bride.

"Is there a lot of this in the future?" The War Doctor asked.

"It does start to happen." The 11th Doctor said guiltily.

"God speed, my love." Elizabeth called, as the five of them finally moved towards the TARDIS.

"I will be right back." The 10th Doctor said as he threw open the door and ran into the TARDIS.

Aderyn smiled as she entered the TARDIS. This was the first console room she had a clear memory of. This was the 10th Doctor's TARDIS, the first place she had ever called home.

"Right then, back to the future." The 11th Doctor said. The 10th Doctor started up the TARDIS.

The War Doctor looked around with distaste "You've let this place go a bit."

The 11th Doctor shrugged "It's his grunge phase. He grows out of it."

The 10th Doctor patted the console fondly "Don't listen to them."

Clara smiled seeing the 10th Doctor talk to the TARDIS the same way her Doctor and Aderyn did.

An alarm blared and the 10th Doctor, who's hand was still on the console, pulled his hand back as he felt a jolt of electricity "Ow. The desktop is glitching."

"Three of us from different time zones. It's trying to compensate." The War Doctor said.

The console room seemed to shift and the Doctors looked around smiling as they saw the very first console room.

"Oh look, the round things." The 11th Doctor smiled.

"I love the round things." The 10th Doctor said.

"What were the round things?"

The 10th Doctor looked around at the 11th Doctor. They were both smiling "No idea."

The room shifted again. Two huge rings topped the TARDIS console. Each ring was broken into segments. Each segment had a different Gallifreyan symbol upon it. There was a railing surround a gallery that lined the walls of the console room. The Doctors stared at it, open mouthed. None of them recognised this Console room. Aderyn did her best to look at it with unfamiliarity.

The 11th Doctor leapt suddenly at the console and cranked a handle. "Oh, Oh dear, the friction contrafibulator. Ha! There, stabilised."

The console finally settled. There was a comforting blue-green glow around the console room as it shifted back to the 11th Doctor's console.

The 10th Doctor grimaced "You've redecorated. I don't like it."

"Oh yeah? Oh, you never do." The 11th Doctor grumbled "Listen, we're going to the National Gallery. The Zygons are underneath it."

"No," Clara said quickly and loudly "UNIT HQ. They followed us there."

The Doctors and Aderyn stared at her.

"Please tell me they don't have access to the Black Archive?" Aderyn groaned.

"You've heard of it then?" Clara asked.

"I work with UNIT. Of course I've heard of it. If the Zygons have got access to the Black Archive, we may just have lost control of the planet."


	31. Cup-a-soup

The Zygons took their time looking around at the many items the Black Archive had to offer.

"The equipment here is phenomenal. The humans don't realise what half this stuff does. We could conquer their world in a day." the Mcgillop-Zygon laughed.

The Zygon that had copied Kate, strolled around in it's natural form. There was little point changing back just yet. It was enjoying the glory of being a Zygon in the Black Archive.

"We were fortunate, then, in our choice of duplicate."

Mcgillop snorted in agreement "If I were human, I'd say it was Christmas."

Kate and Osgood strode confidently into the Black Archive, taking the Zygons by surprise.

"No you wouldn't." As the Zygons turned to face them she raised her hands "We're not armed. You may relax."

"We are armed. You may not." The Zygon hissed.

"Osgood, lock the door." Kate commanded. When Osgood ran to the door, Kate walked over to a small table and pulled out a chair " I'm afraid we can't be interrupted. You don't mind if I get comfortable?" Without waiting for an answer, she sat at the table and crossed her arms.

"You don't mind if I do?" As the Zygon walked towards her it changed. By the time it had reached the table and sat opposite Kate, it had copied her. Now Kate was looking at an identical copy of herself.

"You'll realise there are protocols protecting this place. Osgood?"

Osgood stood behind Kate, her hands behind her back and recited " In the event of any alien incursion, the contents of this room are deemed so dangerous, it will self-destruct in..."

"Five minutes." Kate said. An alarm sounded and on a wall mounted monitor, a countdown started. "There's a nuclear warhead twenty feet beneath us. Are you sitting comfortably?"

"You would destroy London?" The Kate-Zygon scoffed.

"To save the world, yes, yes I would." Kate said, matter of factly.

The Kate-Zygon crossed its arms and tilted it's head to one side "You're bluffing."

"You really think so? Somewhere in your memory is a man called Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge Stewart. I am his daughter." Kate said with a smile.

"Science leads, Kate, is that what you meant? Is that what your father meant?" They heard the Doctor shout. When they all looked around they saw the monitor no longer displayed the countdown, but instead showed the Doctor. And he looked very, very angry.

"Doctor?" Kate frowned.

"Space-Time Telegraph, Kate. A gift from me to your father, hotline straight to the TARDIS. I know about the Black Archive and I know about the security protocol. Kate, please. Please tell me you are not about to do something unbelievably stupid." The Doctor shouted.

"I'm sorry Doctor." Kate said.

The 10th Doctor pushed the Doctor out of the way "Not as sorry as you will be. This is not a decision you will ever be able to live with."

"Kate, we're trying to bring the TARDIS in. Why can't we land?" The 11th Doctor asked.

"Switch it off!" Kate snapped.

"No, please, listen to me." But whatever the 11th Doctor wanted to say went unheard as Aderyn yanked him away from the console.

"Kate, just do what you have to." She said.  
_

The link to the Black Archive was suddenly terminated. The 11th Doctor glared furiously at Aderyn "What did you say that for?"

"Because there is no way we're going to be able to convince her that she is doing the wrong thing." Aderyn snapped at him.

"The Tower of London, totally TARDIS-proof." The 10th Doctor huffed.

"How is that possible?" Clara asked.

"Alien technology plus human stupidity. Trust me, it's unbeatable." The 11th Doctor grumbled, throwing himself into the chair and running his hands through his hair.

Aderyn felt something nudge her gently. When she looked round, the Moment was smiling at her and pointing at something on the floor. Aderyn looked down. At her feet was a stasis cube. She had picked one up when they had left Zygon control. She had no idea why, but she had. It must have fallen out of her pocket. She picked it up. She placed it carefully on the TARDIS console and waited. When she pretended to cough, the War Doctor looked around and saw it. He picked it up.

"We don't need to land."

The 10th Doctor frowned at him "Yeah we do, a tiny bit. Try and keep up."

"No, we don't. We don't. There is another way." The War Doctor held up the stasis cube "Cup-a-soup. What is cup-a-soup?"  
_

When they had arrived at the National Gallery early, Mcgillop had been with them as well as Osgood. He had received a phone call. He had been shocked when he had discovered that he was being phoned by the Doctor from the future, with unexplained orders to move a particular painting. Which he had done.


	32. We Can Only Agree to Die

Osgood's hands were still behind her back and she clenched her fists as her eyes flicked to the countdown. 2 minutes and 59, 58, 57, 56, 55 seconds.

"One word from you would cancel the countdown." The Kate-Zygon said.

Kate nodded "Quite so."

"It's keyed to your voice print." The Zygon said,

"And mine alone." Kate confirmed.

The Kate-Zygon grinned "Cancel the detonation."

"Countermanded." Kate said.

"Cancel the detonation." The Zygon repeated.

"Countermanded." Kate shouted.

"We only have to agree to live." The Kate-Zygon hissed.

Kate raised an eyebrow "Sadly, we can only agree to die."

Osgood tried not to let her fear show on her face "Come on, Doctor. Come on, Aderyn. Please save us." she whispered to herself.  
_

Inside No More, time began to move. Three sonic screwdrivers sent an exploding Dalek crashing out of the painting and into the Black Archive.

"Hello." The War Doctor said as he stepped out of the painting.

"I'm the Doctor." The 10th Doctor said.

"Sorry about the Dalek." the 11th Doctor added.

"And the showing off." Clara muttered as Aderyn helped her out of the painting.

The 11th Doctor stormed over to Kate "Kate Lethbridge Stewart, what in the name of sanity are you doing?"

Aderyn rushed forwards "One moment before anyone answers." She grabbed hold of the Doctor's shoulders and guided him around the table until he was stood in front of the real Kate. "Sorry. Carry on." She said.

The 11th Doctor straightened his bow tie "Yeah, what I said."

"The countdown can only be halted at my personal command. There's nothing you can do." Kate said.

The Doctor looked around at Aderyn, who shook her head "Don't look at me. She's my boss. She'll pull rank."

"There is something we can do. We can make you both agree to halt it." The 10th Doctor said.

Kate shook her head "Not even three of you."

"You're about to murder millions of people." The War Doctor said.

"To save billions. How many times have you made that calculation?" Kate spat.

"Once. Turned me into the man I am now. I'm not even sure who that is any more." The Doctor said sadly.

"You tell yourself it's justified, but it's a lie. Because what I did that day was wrong. Just wrong." The 11th Doctor said.

"And because I got it wrong, I'm going to make you get it right." The Doctor said sadly. He looked up at the countdown. They had just over a minute.

"How?" Kate snorted.

The 10th Doctor grinned "Any second now, you're going to stop that countdown. Both of you, together. Then you're going to negotiate the most perfect treaty of all time. Safeguards all round, completely fair on both sides."

"And the key to perfect negotiation?" The 11th Doctor added cheerfully "Not knowing what side you're on. So, for the next few hours, until we decide to let you out no one in this room will be able to remember if they're human."

"Or Zygon. Whoops a daisy." The 10th Doctor said. He and the 11th Doctor leapt onto the table and the War Doctor soon realised what they were doing. Three sonic screwdrivers were pointed at the memory filter on the ceiling. As the countdown reached 7 seconds, Kate, Osgood and the Zygons shook their heads, confused.

The Two Kates looked at the countdown. Both leapt to their feet and shouted "Cancel the detonation!"

"Peace in our time." The Doctor said triumphantly.

Aderyn leant against a wall and looked at the gathered people. The 10th and 11th Doctors were watching over the two Kates as they negotiated. The two Osgoods were stood in a corner, talking happily between themselves. Clara watched them and the War Doctor was sat in a comfortable looking arm chair.

The Moment watched Aderyn. She was curious about this woman. And now, while everyone was distracted, was the best time to talk to her.

Aderyn smiled as the Moment approached her.

"You shouldn't be able to see me." The Moment said.

"I shouldn't even be here." Aderyn said.

"You shouldn't?"

Aderyn shook her head. "Well I am. But not me."

"That makes no sense." The Moment laughed.

"I rarely make sense." Aderyn said quietly.

"You really are an anomaly. But the way you look at me, it's like you know me."

"No. Just the form you take. Rose Tyler. You may think you're Bad Wolf but you look like Rose Tyler." Aderyn whispered.

"Who is she to you?"

"She was my mother."

Clara looked over at Aderyn, who appeared to be talking to herself. But on Trenzalore, she said she wasn't always talking to herself. Sometimes she was talking to River. Maybe she could see River again. She hoped it was something as comforting for Aderyn as that. She felt that Aderyn had seemed oddly stressed out. She had been acting very oddly indeed. Clara had found chances to invite a sarcastic or snide comment for Aderyn, but Aderyn hadn't risen to the bait. She had been almost nice. When Aderyn's lonely conversation seemed finished, she looked up at Clara, who pointed over at the War Doctor. They both walked towards him.

"Hello." Clara said, sitting in the chair opposite him.

"Hello." The War Doctor said.

"I'm Clara. This is Aderyn. We haven't really met yet."

The War Doctor surveyed the two women in front of him. Clara was sat in the chair opposite him. Aderyn stood behind the chair, one hand on the top of the chair, as though it were something she was used to doing on a daily basis. The War Doctor got the impression that it really was something she did often, and did it now out of force of habit. He smiled at them both.

"I look forward to it. Is there a problem?" He enquired.

"The Doctor, my Doctor," Clara said slowly "He's always talking about the day he did it. The day he wiped out the Time Lords to stop the war."

"One would." The War Doctor shrugged.

"You wouldn't. Because you haven't done it yet. It's still in your future." Clara said.

"You're very sure of yourself." The War Doctor said.

"He regrets it. I see it in his eyes every day." Clara said quietly.

The War Doctor looked up at Aderyn "And what about your Doctor? Which one of these two is your Doctor?"

Aderyn looked over at the two Doctors for a second, before turning back to the Doctor in front of her "Both. And neither. My Doctor would do anything he could to change what he did."

The War Doctor steepled his fingers and looked over them at Aderyn, who was instantly reminded of the way Madame Vastra looked at her. "Including saving all these people. How many worlds has his regret saved, do you think? Look over there. Humans and Zygons working together in peace," He looked at Clara "What makes you think it hasn't happened for me yet?"

"Your eyes," Clara said "You're so much younger."

"Then all things considered, it's time I grew up. I've seen all I needed. The moment has come." The War Doctor looked passed Aderyn and Clara. Clara turned to see what he was looking at, though she saw nothing. Aderyn didn't look away. She knew who he would be seeing. She was the only one watching when The War Doctor disappeared.


	33. Bad Wolf Girl I Could Kiss You

The War Doctor looked down at the box. This box would change everything. A red button had risen from the box.

"You wanted a big, red button." The Moment said. "One big bang, no more Time Lords. No more Daleks. No more Gallifrey. No more. Are you sure?"

The War Doctor nodded "I was sure when I came in here. There is no other way."

"You've seen the men you will become."

The War Doctor smiled "Those men. Extraordinary."

"They were you." The Moment pointed out.

The War Doctor shook his head "No. They are the Doctor."

"You're the Doctor, too." The Moment said firmly.

Again the War Doctor shook his head "No. Great men are forged in fire. It is the privilege of lesser men to light the flame, whatever the cost." He held his hand over the button and thought of how many children were on the planet. 2.47 billion children. And for a second, he heard the laughter of those children, heard the happiness of days past.

"You know the sound the TARDIS makes? That wheezing, groaning. That sound brings hope wherever it goes." The Moment said.

"Yes, I like to think it does." The War Doctor said quietly.

"To anyone who hears it, Doctor. Anyone, however lost." The Moment said. Faintly at first, but steadily growing louder, the wheeze of the time rotor could be heard "Even you."

Two TARDISes parked themselves in the barn. The War Doctor didn't look around until the doors opened and the two Doctors, Clara and Aderyn emerged.

"I told you he hasn't done it yet." Clara said.

"Go away now, all of you. This is for me." The War Doctor snapped.

"These events should be time-locked. We shouldn't even be here." The 10th Doctor said, walking and standing beside the War Doctor.

The 11th Doctor walked over and stood at his other side "Something let us through."

The Moment smiled to herself "Clever boys."

"Go back. Go back to your lives. Go and be the Doctor that I could never be. Make it worthwhile." The War Doctor urged.

"All those years, burying you in my memory. Pretending you didn't exist. Keeping you a secret, even from myself." The 10th Doctor said.

"Pretending you weren't the Doctor, when you were the Doctor more than anybody else. You were the Doctor on the day it wasn't possible to get it right." The 11th Doctor added.

"But this time." The 10th Doctor said sadly.

"You don't have to do it alone." The 11th Doctor said. Both Doctor put their hand over the War Doctor's, all ready to press the button.

"Thank you." The War Doctor whispered.

"What we do today is not out of fear or hatred. It is done because there is no other way." The 10th Doctor said, knowing that he really was trying to convince himself.

"And it is done in the name of the many live we are failing to save." The Doctor said.

Aderyn held her breath as she watched the three Doctors. Each had a hand hovering mere centimetres from the button. It wasn't meant to end like this. Next to her, Clara inhaled sharply. Without thinking, Aderyn took her hand out of her pocket and blindly reached out, curling her fingers around Clara's hand.

Clara felt Aderyn's hand in hers and clung to it. She let out a shuddering breath "You can't let them do this." She whispered.

"Clara, I can't do this alone. I need your help."

Clara looked at Aderyn in shock. If Aderyn's sudden need for contact hadn't been enough of a surprise, the admission she needed help, and her almost pleading tone, left Clara stunned.

"What do you want me to do?" She asked.

Aderyn was staring fixedly at the Doctors "Follow my lead. The old good cop, bad cop routine never fails. Not even with the Doctor." Clara squeezed Aderyn's hand in, what she hoped was a reassuring way. Aderyn let go of Clara's hand and crossed her arms across her chest. She glared at the Doctor as he looked over at them.

The Doctor had seen the movement from the corner of his eye. He had seen Aderyn reach out for Clara and he looked around at them now. "What?" He snapped.

Aderyn shrugged and kicked at a stone "Nothing."

The Doctor turned fully to face her, catching a glimpse of Clara's tearful expression. "No. I know that look. So tell me, what?"

When Aderyn spoke, it was with a bitterness that neither the Doctor or Clara had heard from her before. "You've told me stories about this day and you always made it sound like you regretted it. I can't believe that anymore."

The Doctor, for a brief moment, looked hurt "Why?"

"Because you're heartless enough to do it again." Aderyn spat. Her gaze flitted momentarily to a point just beyond the staring Doctors. To where the Moment was watching her with a mildly impressed expression. But the look Aderyn gave her was a clear plea for help. The Moment nodded and everything changed.

The barn dissolved around them and they were soon stood on what used to be the streets of Arcadia. It's once tall buildings were nothing but rubble and destruction, all around them people were running and screaming, stumbling over dead bodies to reach a safety that wasn't there.

"What's happening?" Clara gasped.

"It's a projection." The War Doctor said quietly.

The Moment leant close to Aderyn and whispered "It's reality."

"It's reality," Aderyn echoed "This is what is happening right now, right this second."

Tears crashed down Clara's cheeks as people ran passed them "These are the people you're going to burn?"

10 nodded sadly "There isn't anything we can do."

"There's always a choice." Aderyn yelled loudly.

"He's right," The Doctor yelled, just as loudly "There isn't another way. There never was. Either I destroy my own people or let the universe burn."

Clara laughed bitterly "Look at you. The three of you. The warrior, the hero, and you."

"And what am I?" The Doctor snapped.

"An idiot?" Aderyn ventured. As much as Clara knew Aderyn was trying to help, she could feel a genuine anger radiating from her like a fiery heat.

"Have you really forgotten?" Clara asked as the streets faded into the barn.

"Yes, maybe. Yes." The Doctor finally admitted quietly.

"We've got enough warriors," Clara said "Any old idiot can be a hero."

"Then what do I do?" The Doctor pleaded.

"There's always a choice," Aderyn said again. She put a gentle hand on the Doctor's shoulder "You have suffered enough, and warred with yourself. It's time that you won." The Doctor looked from Clara to Aderyn and allowed himself to smile.

"You do what you've always done," Clara said "Be a doctor. You told me the name you chose was a promise. What was the promise?"

"Never cruel or cowardly." The 10th Doctor said sadly.

"Never give up. Never give in." The War Doctor said.

"You've broken your promise. You're breaking your promise right now. You are being cruel and cowardly. You're giving in. It's even worse when there are three of you doing it." Aderyn said. Most of the anger and hatred in her tone had abated and been replaced with exasperation.

The Doctor sighed "Then what do you propose I do?"

"There's always a choice." Aderyn reiterated.

The Doctor smiled and looked round at the 10th Doctor.

"You're not actually suggesting that we change our own personal history?" The 10th Doctor asked.

The Doctor shrugged "We change history all the time. What I'm suggesting is far worse."

"What exactly are you suggesting?" The War Doctor asked.

The Doctor turned so both Doctors were in view and spread his arms wide " Gentlemen, I have had four hundred years to think about this. I've changed my mind."

"There's a billion, billion Daleks up there, attacking." The War Doctor said.

"Yes, there is." The Doctor agreed.

"But there's something those billion, billion Daleks don't know." The 10th Doctor said with a smile.

"Because if they did, they'd send for reinforcements." The Doctor grinned.

"What don't they know?" Clara asked.

Aderyn grinned and Clara saw how much like the Doctor she still looked. "This time there's three of them."

"Oh, yes, that is good. That is brilliant!" The War Doctor said enthusiastically.

"Oh! I'm getting that too. That is brilliant." The 10th Doctor spun happily on the spot.

"I've been thinking about it for centuries." The Doctor laughed.

The War Doctor was genuinely happy with his predicament for the first time since he had stolen the Moment and made his way to this barn "She didn't just show me any old future, she showed me exactly the future I needed to see."

The Moment laughed to see him so happy "Now you're getting it,"

"Who did?" The Doctor frowned.

"Bad Wolf girl I could kiss you!"

At the War Doctor's words, the two Doctors looked at him in shock. Both the Moment and Aderyn smiled, crossed their arms and said "Yeah that is going to happen."

"So what are we doing? What's the plan?" Clara asked, finding herself caught up in the excitement, even though she didn't completely follow what was happening.

"The Dalek fleets are surrounding Gallifrey, firing on it constantly." The War Doctor said.

"The Sky Trench is holding, but what if the whole planet just disappeared?" The 10th Doctor said.

Clara's excitement faded "Tiny bit of an ask."

"The Daleks would be firing on each other. They'd destroy themselves in their own crossfire." Aderyn said, quickly catching on to what the Doctors were planning.

"Gallifrey would be gone, the Daleks would be destroyed, and it would look to the rest of the universe as if they'd annihilated each other." The War Doctor said.

"Where would Gallifrey be?" Clara asked, trying desperately to catch up.

"Frozen," The 10th Doctor said "Frozen in an instant of time, safe and hidden away."

"Exactly like a painting." The 11th Doctor added.

When Clara frowned Aderyn said "Cup-a-soup."


	34. No Sir, All Thirteen

In the War room, Androgar sighed "Another one."

The General saw what he saw "Are you sure the message is from him?"

"Oh yes." Androgar said.

The General frowned "Why would he do that?"

The Doctor had, indeed, left them another message. This one said Gallifrey Stands.

"What's the mad fool talking about now?" the General sighed.

Around the room, holo monitors flashed into life and the three Doctors were smiling at them.

"Hello, hello, Gallifrey High Command, this is the Doctor speaking." The Doctor said cheerfully.

The 10th Doctor waved "Hello! Also the Doctor. Can you hear me?"

The War Doctor, ever more dignified, didn't wave "Also the Doctor, standing ready."

The General gaped at the monitors "Dear God, three of them. All my worst nightmares at once."

The Doctor looked at them seriously "General, we have a plan. We should point at this moment, it is a fairly terrible plan."

"And almost certainly won't work." The 10th Doctor added.

"I was happy with fairly terrible." The Doctor said.

"Sorry," The 10th Doctor said quickly "Just thinking aloud."

"We're flying our three TARDISes into your lower atmosphere." The Doctor continued "We're positioned at equidistant intervals around the globe. Equidistant. So grown up."

"We're just about ready to do it." The War Doctor said.

"Do what?" The General demanded.

"We're going to freeze Gallifrey." The War Doctor said.

"I'm sorry, what?" The General said.

"Using our TARDISes, we're going to freeze Gallifrey in a single moment in time." The 10th Doctor said.

"You know, like those stasis cubes?" The War Doctor clarified "A single moment in time, held in a parallel pocket universe."

"A single moment in time, held in a parallel pocket universe. And all the people on it." The 10th Doctor said.

The General stared in them in disbelief "What? Even if that were possible which it isn't, why would you do such a thing?"

"Because the alternate is burning." The Doctor said seriously.

"And I've seen that. And I never want to see it again." The 10th Doctor said.

"We'd be lost in another universe, frozen in a single moment. We'd have nothing." The General protested.

"You would have hope. And right now, that is exactly what you don't have." Aderyn said.

"Who is that?" The General asked, praying it wasn't another Doctor.

"I'm an anomaly. And right now I'm the sanity of this operation." Aderyn said.

"It's delusional. The calculations alone would take hundreds of years." The General shouted.

The Doctor smiled "Oh, hundreds and hundreds."

The 10th Doctor grinned broadly "But don't worry, I started a very long time ago."

The rest of the holo monitors around the room switched on and soon the Council were looking at another Doctor. But this one was the face they had all first come to know as the Doctor.

"Calling the War Council of Gallifrey. This is the Doctor."

"You could might say I've been doing this all my lives." The Doctor said, as more versions of the Doctor appeared on the screen, each of them talking to the Council and Doctors in turn.

"Good luck."

"Standing by."

"Ready."

"Commencing calculations."

"Soon be there."

"Across the boundaries that divide one universe from another."

"Just got to lock on to his coordinates."

"And for my next trick."

The Council stared around at the screens. "I didn't know when I was well off. All twelve of them!" The General breathed.

"No sir," the image on one of the monitors changed. Instead of seeing the Doctor's face, as they had with all of the other Doctors, they saw a pair of steel blue eyes framed by expressive eyebrows. And the voice that spoke was heavily laced with a Scottish accent "All thirteen."

"Sir! The Daleks know that something is happening. They're increasing their fire power." Androgar warned.

"Do it, Doctor. Just do it." The General pleaded.

"Ok, gentlemen. We're ready. Geronimo!" The Doctor shouted and pressed a button on the console.

"Allons-y!" The 10th Doctor roared. He too triggered something on the console.

"Oh for God's sake." The War Doctor sighed "Gallifrey stands!" He pulled a lever.

The thirteen TARDISes surrounded the planet.


	35. There's Always Something We Don't Know

They sat, all in quiet contemplation, in the National Gallery, looking up at Gallifrey Falls. When they had returned to the Gallery, Aderyn had made sure they had all been given a cup of tea. She had argued that it would do them good. And it did. They were all far more relaxed ad even cheerful.

"I don't suppose we'll know if we actually succeeded." The War Doctor said eventually "But at worst, we failed doing the right thing, as opposed to succeeding in doing the wrong."

"Life and soul you are." Clara smiled.

"What is it actually called?" The 10th Doctor asked, stepping closer to the painting.

"There's some debate. Either No More or Gallifrey Falls." The Doctor said.

The War Doctor scowled "Not very encouraging."

"But that's wrong. That isn't the title." Aderyn frowned.

"How would you know?" The Doctor asked.

"Spoilers." Aderyn said quickly, taking a drink of her tea to stop herself talking.

"How did it get here?" The 10th Doctor put on his glasses and looked closely at the painting.

The Doctor shrugged "No idea."

The 10th Doctor put his glasses back in his pocket "There's always something we don't know."

"One should certainly hope so." The War Doctor said, pushing himself up from the bench he had been sat on "Well, gentlemen, it has been an honour and a privilege."

"Likewise." The 10th Doctor said, shaking the War Doctor's hand jovially.

"Doctor." The Doctor said, also shaking his hand.

The War Doctor smiled at the two men in front of him "And if I grow to be half the man that," He turned to look at Aderyn and Clara, who were both sat on a bench "either of you are, I shall be happy indeed."

"That's right. Aim high." Aderyn smiled as she and Clara both stood to hug the War Doctor.

"It is high indeed. You are both strong and very clever. You'll be good companions for me when I get to be them. And I just hope our days are as today has been." They watched as he walked to his TARDIS and pushed the door open "I won't remember this, will I?"

The Doctor shook his head "The time streams are out of sync. You can't retain it, no."

The War Doctor sighed "So I won't remember that I tried to save Gallifrey rather than burn it. I'll have to live with that. But for now, for this moment, I am the Doctor again. Thank you."

Aderyn walked up to him and hugged him again "You'll always be the Doctor." She then kissed him on the cheek. He smiled as he walked into the TARDIS and closed the door behind him. Aderyn stepped back from the TARDIS as she heard the time rotor whir and wheeze.


	36. Always Soaring

The 10th Doctor put his cup down and his hands in his pockets as he looked steadily at Aderyn "I won't either, so you might as well tell me."

"Tell you what?" Aderyn frowned.

"Who you are."

Aderyn smiled "I am Aderyn Oswin Tyler."

The 10th Doctor beamed. What he had seen in her eyes had been right. That familiarity had been justified "Little Addy."

"Not so little anymore. I had a growth spurt." She smiled and added quietly "And regenerated a couple of times."

"Hang on," The 10th Doctor frowned "Regenerated? Tyler?"

"Daughter of Rose Tyler and the Doctor." She said.

"No you're not." The Doctor said suddenly.

Aderyn continued to smile. She crossed her arms, amused, as she watched the Doctor pace around her.

"Aderyn doesn't like Clara so would never have been nice to her. You knew too much about what was happening," He suddenly grabbed Aderyn's hand, looking down at the band on her ring finger "Aderyn never wears her wedding ring. It's not even the same ring. Who are you?" He let Aderyn's hand go.

"I am Aderyn Oswin Tyler," Aderyn said slowly "But not the one that either of you know. I know you both. But right now neither of you know me. I am from your future. A future where you're no longer then man who regrets or the man who forgets. And I got remarried."

"Then why are you here?" The 10th Doctor asked.

Aderyn's eyes filled with tears "To make sure you did the right thing. I pulled a few strings and was allowed to partake in one last request."

"Who's last request?" Clara asked soothingly.

"Mine." Aderyn said in a hoarse whisper.

"Addy..." The Doctor started.

Aderyn held up her hand "Spoilers. He might not remember," she nodded at the 10th Doctor "but two you will. Fixed points shouldn't be messed with. You taught me that the hard way...or rather, you will teach me that the hard way. The very hard way. And soon I think. Well I say soon. It feels like years ago now. It'll be a few years from now that lesson will be taught. Just don't be offended when that lesson isn't kindly received."

"But haven't you just changed a fixed point?" Clara asked.

Aderyn shrugged "Theoretically speaking yes. But at the same time no. Either way, Gallifrey is no longer there and the Daleks were destroyed. I've not so much changed a fixed point as found a loop hole. But I won't find out for definite until I get back."

The 10th Doctor cleared his throat "Speaking of getting back, I should probably be off. But where is it we're going that you don't want to talk about?"

"I saw Trenzalore, where we're buried. We die in battle among millions."

The 10th Doctor frowned "That's not how it's supposed to be."

The Doctor shrugged "That's how the story ends. Nothing we can do about it. Trenzalore is where you're going."

The 10th Doctor smiled suddenly "Oh, never say nothing. Anyway, good to know my future is in safe hands. Keep a tight hold on it, Clara."

Clara hugged him "On it."

"And fly high, Little Bird."

"Always soaring." Aderyn whispered as the 10th Doctor hugged her tightly.

He pulled open his TARDIS door "Trenzalore. We need a new destination, because I don't want to go." He closed the door behind him and the engines groaned into life.

"He always says that." Aderyn smiled.

Clara could feel the tension between the Doctor and Aderyn. It had been quite a revelation. She cleared her throat politely "You both clearly have stuff to discuss. I'll leave you to it. Oh, by the way, there was an old man looking for you. I think it was the curator." She ducked into the safety of the TARDIS.

The Doctor and Aderyn sat on the bench, both looking up at the painting.

"I could be a curator. I'd be great at curating. I'd be the Great Curator. I could retire and do that. I could retire and be the curator of this place." The Doctor said. Aderyn chuckled lightly and they both jumped when they heard someone approaching.

" You know, I really think you might." They both looked round to see an old man walking towards them. Aderyn nodded and smiled at the man. The Doctor stared at him opened mouthed. Had his face been slimmer, his hair dark brown, give him a long coat and a long scarf and the Doctor knew he would have been staring at himself.

"I never forget a face." The Doctor smiled.

"I know you don't. And in years to come, you might find yourself revisiting a few. But just the old favourites, eh? You were curious about this painting, I think. I acquired it in remarkable circumstances. What do you make of the title?" The Curator said.

"Which title? There's two. No More or Gallifrey Falls."

The Curator leant heavily on his cane "Oh, you see, that's where everybody's wrong. Except your young friend here. Do you know the title?"

"It's all one title." Aderyn said "Gallifrey Falls No More."

"Now, what would you think that means, eh?" The Curator said, looking pointedly at the Doctor.

"That Gallifrey didn't fall. It worked. It's still out there." The Doctor guessed.

The Curator's smiled broadened "I'm only a humble curator. I'm sure I wouldn't know."

"Then where is it?" Aderyn asked.

"Where is it indeed? Lost perhaps. Things do get lost, you know. And now you must excuse me. Oh, you have a lot to do." The Curator said.

"Do I?" The Doctor asked.

"Indeed. You both do." The Curator nodded.

"Is that what I'm supposed to do now? Go looking for Gallifrey?" The Doctor asked quickly as the Curator turned to leave.

"Oh, it's entirely up to you. Your choice, eh? I can only tell you what I would do if I were you. Oh, if I were you. Oh, perhaps I was you, of course. Or perhaps you are me. Congratulations."

"Thank you very much." The Doctor shook the Curator's hand.

"Or perhaps it doesn't matter either way. Who knows, eh? Who knows?" They watched the Curator leave before they both sat down again.

"So how far in my future are you?" The Doctor asked.

Aderyn shrugged "I forget. Time passes so strangely these days. But of course time isn't a straight line."

The Doctor chuckled "It's a ball of wibbly wobbly timey wimey stuff."

"Exactly." Aderyn said "But my job here is done. And I need to head back."

"How?"

"I'm going to get picked up. But if you wouldn't mind dropping me off, that would be brilliant." Aderyn stood.

"How has this even been possible? Aderyn, I mean you, don't have two time streams anymore." The Doctor stood as well.

"Your Aderyn isn't in her own time stream. We swapped places. I let her know the situation and she kindly agreed. Though she is currently discovering what the TARDIS library has in store in the future."

The Doctor smiled and slowly started to walk back to the TARDIS "You always did like the TARDIS library. What am I like where you're from?"

Aderyn shrugged "Different."

"Is that good or bad?"

Aderyn shrugged again "Just different."

Aderyn set their destination and while they travelled, she and Clara spoke happily. The Doctor knew that Clara would have issues when they next saw their Aderyn. Their Aderyn still didn't like Clara. But for now, it was so nice to see them getting along. When they finally landed goodbyes were short. The Doctor and Clara watched from the TARDIS door as Aderyn walked up to a figure in the distance. Neither of them could see who it was. But they both saw when the figure held out their arm, Aderyn took it and the two of them disappeared.


End file.
